Candle on the Water
by daruma-sama
Summary: Roxas was told he would meet a dragon, but he wasn't told that he would become a dragon rider. AkuRoku
1. Escape

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or the characters .**

* * *

**~1~**

**Escape**

It was cold that night in Hollow Bastion, even colder when living inside a rundown barn with nothing but the hay to use as a blanket. The young blond boy shivered as a gust of wind whistled through the cracks causing the cows and horses to stir in complaint. A loud grumble from the boy's stomach joined them in complaint not only from the cold, but lack of food to eat. According to Marluxia he hadn't milked old Bessie correctly and now her utter was swollen needing immediate medical attention. As punishment and to help pay for the veterinary costs the boy was only feed once a day, just enough to keep him working nonstop from daybreak until dusk.

The boy's sapphire blue eyes looked down at his blister swollen hands from tending to fields and chopping wood for the fire Larxene and Marluxia used in the house. He had only been living with the couple and their two daughters, Xion and Namine, for two weeks and he had hated it from day one when they told him they only adopted him so he could do work since their daughters couldn't. They had adopted him from a local orphanage after his parents and twin brother died in a ship wreck only he had survived. After day two he ran back to the orphanage so he didn't have to stay with the family, but the orphanage sent him back because they said that they were already full as it is and didn't need an already adopted child to come back. He didn't run away because the whole family was terrible, in truth, Xion and Namine were very kind to him when their parents were around. They brought him things to help the blisters on his hands or some extra food because they felt bad, but Larxene and Marluxia were another story.

About to shut his tired eyes, he was startled awake again when the doors were slammed open which he assumed from the wind. With a heavy sigh he pushed himself up despite the burning complaints from his muscles to go close the door for the third time that night. However, when he stood up and looked at the door, two black figures had already closed it and were walking over to him with their hoods covering their faces. When they reached him they pulled back their hoods, both the black haired and blonde haired girl giving him smiles.

"Namine, Xion," the boy blinking in confusion. "What are you doing here in the middle of the night?" He winced slightly when he applied too much pressure to his injured left ankle. It happened when he was trying to calm a startled cow only to have the cow knock him over and step on his ankle. He knew it was probably shattered and he tried bind it with some pieces of old wood and ripped clothing, but it didn't help much when he was still forced to work nonstop.

"Here Roxas," Namine said pulling out half a loaf of bread from underneath her hooded sweater. "It isn't much, but it's all we could get without mother noticing."

"I was the one the snatched it Nam," Xion snapped with a frown and crossed arms. "God, you take the credit for everything."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to." the blonde girl apologized as she took one of Roxas' hands and placing the bread in it. Her blue eyes narrowed at the many blisters covering Roxas' hands, but knew that he wouldn't have to suffer much longer. "Don't worry Roxas, you won't have to suffer through this much longer. A dragon..."

"Again with your stupid dreams," the ebony haired girl complained shaking her head. "I swear you read too much fantasy Nam."

"They aren't stupid," Namine pouted slightly, but still having a hint of anger in her voice. "You know every time I have dreams of the future they come true." A frown plagued Xion's face knowing that her sister was right, but those things she predicted were things that most people could see coming....most people.

"So you're just good at judging the way things are going to happen," Xion sighed with the roll of her eyes and throwing her hands in the air only to bring them back down to her thighs. "Big whoop-dee-doo! But seriously Nam? A dragon? A dragon?" She knew that from her father's teaching that dragons indeed once did exist, but went extinct when people started hunting them to cure just about everything. Every part of a dragon could be used to cure basic acne all the way to curing an entire plague. It was no wonder that humans went dragon hunting and it ended in the extinction of dragons themselves.

"Yes a dragon," the blonde girl sighed with slight irritation, "There are still few that remain, the ones that are able to turn invisible at least." She closed her eyes as she focused on finding the last remaining dragons in the world, there were around 100, most living in secluded areas where it was hard for humans to get to. The one that she saw coming to save the boy in front of her was ten miles away, not far for a dragon, but the dragon was in his 'human' form, if one could call it that.

"Dragons can't turn invisible," the younger of the two sister groaned shaking her head back and forth in annoyance. "I think you mixing fantasy with truth now Nam. Wait until father hears of this." Their father was known for tracking dragons down and had killed many in the past before they went extinct which landed him as a farmer since he no longer could be useful as a dragon hunter.

"With the threat of becoming extinct they gained the ability," Namine grinned, "Maybe when Roxas' dragon gets here you'll see...or not." She let out a sweet laugh that seemed to calm even the raging wind outside.

"Whatever," Xion frowned giving up on arguing with her older sister.

"As I was saying," Namine continued shooting her younger sister a silencing glare, "A dragon will find you and help you."

"A dragon?" Roxas asked raising a questioning eyebrow, "I think I'm going to agree with Xion and say you've been reading too many fantasy books. Namine, I don't believe in dr..." He couldn't finish his sentence because Namine put a firm finger to his lips giving him a threatening look with it.

"Don't say that," The older of the two sisters hissed, "Don't ever say that. Every time someone says that a dragon dies. It's how all magical creatures lose their magic and die."

"Like the fairies in Peter Pan Nam?" Xion snickered with a hand over her mouth containing the rest of her laughter. "I swear, if you weren't so damn good at art mother and father would never put up with your nonsense."

"It's not nonsense!" Namine shouted, closing her eyes trying to contain the anger that was building up inside her. She kept telling herself that Xion had a year to go before she would understand everything that remained hidden to the normal eyes. After taking a few deep breaths her anger vanished allowing her to open her eyes and look at Roxas. "Goodnight Roxas." She turned causing her long blonde hair to fan out from the quick turn. Xion watched her sister go to the barn doors with a disapproving frown before waving goodnight to Roxas and following after.

Roxas looked down at the bread in his hand which caused his stomach to grumble loudly, yelling at him to just eat it. It wasn't long before he gave into his angry stomach and started to eat the bread wondering about what Namine said. It couldn't be true that a dragon would save them, if there were really dragons, why would it waste its time on him? His family were simple fishermen and after they died none of his relatives wanted to take him in so they sent him to the orphanage. No one wanted him except to do work like Marluxia and Larxene. He let out a sigh as he finished the last of the bread resting once again in the hay he used for a bed. As he drifted off to sleep he wished Namine was telling the truth when she said a dragon was going to rescue him from this place, though knowing it probably wasn't. He let sleep consume him at last knowing he had a long day ahead of him and should get his rest now.

**~0~**

"Get up squirt!" Larxene growled dumping ice cold water on the sleeping boy. "You better get up if you want to get all your work done. We added laundry to your work since we can no longer pay old Ninny to do it because of your mistake. Vet bills are very expensive, I suggest you remember that the next time you decide to slack on milking our cows." She yanked him up by his hair with a icy cold glare as he struggled to loosen her grip, "Didn't you hear me squirt? Get your lazy ass up and get to work!" She threw him to the ground before storming out of the barn in a fit of rage.

"Oww," Roxas wince rubbing his tender scalp as he got up to start his long day of work ahead of him. He started off with milking the cows, 'carefully' this time, then mucking out the stalls since he was already in the barn. After finishing his tasks in the barn he made his way to the fields to tend to them as much as possible before the sun came up and made it worse. A frown appeared on the blonde's face as he noticed the soft shades of orange and pink peeking over the horizon threatening the heat of day upon him. A growl escaped from him hoping it would scare the sun away for a little bit, but it only seemed to encourage the sun to come up faster which really irritated him. When the sun had finally come up Namine came out to the fields with some warm oatmeal and a cup of water on a tray.

"Good morning Roxas," the blonde girl smiled a smile that could rival the brightness of the sun. "I brought you breakfast."

"Morning Namine," Roxas replied with a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Thank you." Namine sat down next to him handing over the tray so he could eat before he had to continue working. She knew that her mother would be beyond livid that she was getting her white nightdress dirty again, but she didn't care because she would wash it out when she got back inside.

"You know Roxas," Namine said looking up at the cloudless sky, "Tonight you will be free from this place."

"Again with the dragon stuff Namine?" the blonde boy frowned as he set his cup of water back on the tray. "You really think that a dragon would waste its time with me?"

"I know you don't believe me now, but it's true." the older sister smiled, "I have seen a month into your future and it looks good. Although, I have yet to understand the choice the dragon makes in the end, but I'll have to wait to see what happens. The future can always be changed." She shrugged knowing that she'll be their to witness it first hand when it happens so all she'll have to do is wait. Not only that, but she couldn't reveal too much about the boy's future without ruining it.

"What is this I hear about a dragon?" asked a deep voice from behind them that they both knew belonged to Marluxia.

"I was just telling him about the book I'm reading, father." Namine smiled brightly hoping it threw her father off guard not knowing how much her father actually heard. She hated that he was so silent when he approached which he learned from his dragon hunting years and always allowed him to eavesdrop on their conversations.

"Well it will have to be at another time," Marluxia said with an emotionless mask. "Roxas needs to hurry and finish his breakfast so he can finish his work." His blue eyes scanned the edge of the forest as if looking for something, but finding nothing. This made Namine uneasy since she knew that he father probably heard most of their conversation and would go looking for the dragon tonight. The pink haired man turned his attention back to the two blondes, "Hurry up, things need to get done." With that said he turned and walked back to the house without even yelling at either of them for slacking off.

"This isn't good." Namine growled softly, mentally slapping herself for not being more cautious. "He knows that the dragon is going to get you tonight. He never doubts my dreams." Her blue eyes turned to face the boy sitting next to her, "You better leave sometime today. The dragon is already in the forest and will find you. Whatever happens, you have to keep the dragon away from my father."

"What are you talking about?" Roxas asked completely confused at the serious expression on the girl's face. "You're acting as if you father is a dragon hunter or something."

"He was," the blonde girl replied, "Until they thought that dragons were extinct and then he became a farmer. He knows my dreams never lie and now knows that dragons aren't extinct. Roxas, my father will stop at nothing to catch and kill the dragon. Let the dragon protect you and in return you have to protect him. Promise me this." Roxas looked into Namine's eyes unable to say no so he gave her a nod agreeing to the promise even though he doubted he'd ever meet a dragon. If he did, then he would keep the promise.

"Only one problem," the blonde boy sighed glancing over at the window with Larxene and Xion in the kitchen. "How the hell am I supposed to get away in broad daylight? Even if I could get away, I can't run because my ankle is probably shattered and hurts when I move it even slightly."

"I'll cause a distraction," Namine whispered and turning around every so often to check that her father wasn't there, "It will give you time to get deep enough into the forest to meet the dragon." She closed her eyes glancing briefly into the future knowing that everything would be okay as long as it went according to her plan. "At noon, say that you're going to feed the horses and cows, go to the barn and exit out the back using the loose board. You know what I'm talking about. Then go as deep into the forest as you can. Call for Axel, for that is the dragon's name. He'll come to you."

"Namine," Roxas said with a heavy sigh, "I would rather wait for my ankle to heal a bit before I try running away again." He knew that if he tried to run away now, he would most likely injure himself further only to get caught and have to work more, possibly even being beaten.

"There is no time," the blonde girl frowned, "Besides, the dragon will heal your ankle for you once you meet up with him. Every part of a dragon can be used to heal just about anything. He'll know what to do, just trust him." Roxas was about to argue, but when he looked into Namine's eyes there was no room for argument. He could tell that she was dead serious about him leaving today whether he liked it or not. With a heavy sigh, he gave her back the tray with the empty bowl and cup.

"Fine," the blonde boy replied closing his eyes as he let out another sigh. "I'll go into the forest, find the dragon and leave. Sound good to you?" He rolled his eyes when she gave him a bright smile knowing that he would probably regret listening to her in the end. Sure Namine and Xion were nice to him, but they were still the children of Larxene and Marluxia making him wonder if this was just an entire setup... he hoped not.

"Noon," Namine said with her slender pointer finger up, "Not a second later, got it. And whatever you do, don't stop even when you find the dragon. Take the dragon far away. You understand?"

"Yes, I understand," Roxas replied placing his chin in the palm of his hand and casting a glance to the side in annoyance. Namine gave him another bright smile before leaving him to do his work out in the fields. He worked continuously, every so often wiping the sweat away from his eyes and glancing up at the sun's position in the sky. When the sun was at its highest position he, made his way to the barn to 'feed' the animals like he had told Marluxia a few minutes before. Slowly he made his way to the back of the barn to find the loose board and wiggled his way through to the forest. Every step he took hurt more in the forest because the ground was uneven and muddy wet from the recent rains.

When he came upon a large tree that had fallen directly in his path he let out a heavy sigh. It would take him longer to walk around so instead he climbed over it using mainly his arms to avoid putting pressure on his left ankle. He managed to climb to the top and was about to lower himself down the other side when the branch he was using snapped causing him to fall. Expecting to hit the hard, muddy ground he tried to position himself at an angle that wouldn't do much harm. Instead, he felt someone catch him making him panic at the thought that Marluxia had found him so he kept his eyes closed.

"I'm sorry I ran away, please don't hurt me." Roxas apologized only to hear a laugh that wasn't Marluxia's.

"I'm not gonna hurt you kid," replied the male voice in a soft chuckle. Roxas took his time to slowly open his eyes to stare up into two bright green eyes that looked more cat like than human. As if the new man's eyes weren't different enough, the man had bright red spiked hair with two golden horns slightly curved at the tips on his forehead, a long black scaly tail with red spikes that swished back and forth and two black and red wings.

"Please don't eat my soul," the younger male begged knowing that he wouldn't be able to get away even if he did fight back. He wondered if Namine had meant to warn him about a demon instead of a dragon.

"I'm not a demon," the redhead frowned as he placed Roxas down on a boulder, "Humans, always stereotyping I swear. Okay, first, I'm a dragon, not a demon. Second, if I was a demon I wouldn't have horns or a tail. Third, not all demons eat human souls, only the lower level ones that don't even have a human form. So quick recap, Dragons have horns and tails in their human form, and demons don't. And only lower demons that don't have human forms eat human souls. Got it memorized kid?" The blonde nodded wondering if the 'dragon' was lying to him, it was possible, but he wasn't in any position to escape so he just sat there. The older male kneeled down to examine Roxas' left ankle making a 'tsk tsk' sound by clicking his tongue. Then he took hold of the young male's blister swollen hands glancing over all the bruises and cuts he also had.

"Who did this to you kid?" the dragon asked with a hint of anger in his voice.

"It's nothing," Roxas frowned as he snatched his hands away and looking off towards where he knew the farm was. "And my name's Roxas, not kid. And I am fifteen years old. Got it memorized dragon?"

"Feisty," the redhead chuckled as he stood up offering the blonde a hand. "I'm Axel. But we better be going Roxas because whoever you ran away from just entered the forest and he is a dragon hunter. Don't feel like fighting one today." Roxas nodded remembering Namine's warning and not wanting to go back to the farm. He got off the rock forgetting about his left ankle causing him to fall over in pain, but Axel caught him with a smile.

"Careful there, I'll heal your ankle once we are a safe distance." Axel smiled helping Roxas find his balance again before backing up to transform into his dragon form. He was a coal black color with red spikes running from the top of his head to the end of his tail were they joined together making it look like hair at the end of a donkey's tail. His wings were the same black and red color that Roxas saw before in his human form only they were much larger. He lowered he head to allow Roxas to ride him, but the blonde just gave him a questioning look.

"I've never been on a dragon before," Roxas said looking down at the ground biting his bottom lip. "What if I fall off?" He knew he would be flatter than a pancake if he did fall off Axel and that was the part that scared him the most.

"I won't let you fall," the dragon laughed spewing small lines of fire as he did. "Now get on before the dragon hunter gets here." Roxas just nodded knowing that Namine would kill him if he didn't keep his promise to keep the dragon safe. When he touched the dragon's scaly skin he expected it to feel like a snake or any other reptile, but it was different. Each scale, he noticed, weren't scales, but feathers.

"Feathers?" the blonde blinked as he ran his hand through them while he sat on Axel's shoulders.

"Hold on Roxie," Axel warned as he jumped into the air, wings moving quickly like a humming bird to lift their weight. Roxas let out a yelp of surprise as he grabbed hold of the red spikes that he thought would be hard, but again, they were feathers. He shut his eyes just as tightly as he was holding onto the red spike. The harsh wind that was lashing at him earlier as they were taking off suddenly calmed causing him to open his eyes slightly. His blue eyes widened as he looked down at the clouds beneath his feet and everything that once looked so big was now so small.

"Amazing," Roxas gasped in amazement. "Do you always see the world like this?"

"Only when we are flying," the dragon laughed, "You humans are always so amused when you fly for the first time."

"You've let others ride you before," The blonde asked having never thought about that before.

"Nope," Axel shook his head, "You're the first, but I've heard stories from the elders. Actually if they knew that I let you ride me they would be shooting fire out their butts. They say humans can't be trusted, but I can tell you're a good person."

"No," Roxas sighed as he leaned down to rest his head on part of the dragon's long neck. "They are right. Humans shouldn't be trusted."

"Sure most humans are greedy," Axel growled softly, "like that dragon hunter." He glanced back meeting the blonde's eyes, "but you're different. I feel like we were meant to meet each other." Roxas gave the dragon a smile feeling the same way and silently thanking Namine for telling him about his savior even if he didn't believe her then.

"You know," Roxas yawned feeling his lack of sleep catching up to him, "Someone who can see the future told me I was going to meet a dragon. I'm glad the future she saw came true." The feathers seemed to wrap around him, holding him in place as he fell asleep.

"Me too Roxie," Axel smiled, "Me too."

* * *

**A/N: **God, I know I shouldn't be starting another story, but I was watching Pete's Dragon and had to.... . Damn Electrical Parade making me want to watch Pete's Dragon which in turn inspired this story.

Until my next installment

~Byes


	2. Unicorns, Fairies and Mermaids, OH MY!

**~2~**

**Unicorns, Fairies and Mermaid, Oh My!**

Axel kept flying until the sun started to set knowing that it would be too cold for Roxas if he continued and that he was far enough away so that the dragon hunter wouldn't be able to catch them. He spotted a small clearing by a lake, circling around until his feet touched the ground as to not to stir the the blonde. His attempt was foiled when the human let out a small yawn and stretched forgetting he was still riding a dragon successfully causing him to fall off and hit the ground. The dragon couldn't help but laugh as he transformed into his 'human' form offering the boy on the ground a hand.

"What the?" the blonde groaned rubbing his head blinking at the dragon in front of him. He had thought it was all just a dream that was too good to be true, but here the dragon was, standing in front of him. That was unless he was still dreaming, but for some reason he doubted it.

"Sorry," the redhead apologized, "I didn't expect you to wake up."

"I thought you said you wouldn't let me fall off?" Roxas complained as he took the redhead's hand wincing when too much pressure was placed on his left ankle.

"I can only do so much," the dragon replied with a small shrug, "Now let's look at that ankle of yours." He helped the blonde to a boulder by the lake before taking off the boy's sock, shoe and makeshift cast revealing an extremely swollen ankle. His long fingers gently touched the blonde's skin feeling the bones shattered in multiply places. A frown found the redhead's face as he realized the ankle had been that way for at least a day and hadn't even been relieved of pressure during that time. With a sigh he broke one of his fingers so that a part of the bone stuck out then using one of his sharp nails to cut a sliver out of the bone the size of a ladybug.

"What are you doing?" Roxas asked in shock gently taking the dragon's injured hand into his own as his blue eyes looked around for the nearest stick.

"Dragon bones heal broken bones," Axel simply stated with a small smile, "Your ankle will be as good as new. I can't believe you don't know this when you've been living with a dragon hunter. It's the reasons that dragons have to hide now because every part of a dragon can heal anything."

"I didn't know there were dragons until I met you," the blonde said with a sigh. "And if you knew Marluxia was a dragon hunter, why did you help me?"

"Everything happens for a reason Roxie," the dragon smiled, "Now take you medicine so your ankle will be healed." He placed the small piece of bone in the blonde's hand.

"I can't eat this," Roxas complained holding it out to Axel, "It's gross."

"Roxie, eat it," Axel insisted pushing the blonde's hand back, "It's good for you. Besides you can't leave your ankle like that or do you want to limp for the rest of your life."

"No," replied the blonde with a heavy sigh as he looked down in defeat. He closed his eyes and popped the small piece of bone into his mouth like a piece of candy. "There, you happy now?" He growled with a frown as he crossed his arms glaring at the dragon.

"How's your ankle feel?" the redhead asked gently running one of his long fingers down the human's ankle that wasn't swollen any more. Roxas blinked as he tested moving his ankle around surprised to feel no pain or discomfort. It was completely healed just as the dragon had said it would be which was nothing less than amazing.

"How?" Roxas asked jumping off the rock to test out his left ankle and again there was no pain or discomfort.

"Weren't you listening?" Axel chuckled grabbing both of the blonde's wrist to bring his hands to his mouth. "How about another demonstration then?" He began to lick Roxas' hands to get rid of all the blisters that he thought were extremely painful for the human.

"What are you doing! ?" the human exclaimed pulling his saliva covered hands away from the redhead with his blue eye wide with shock. "That is disgusting!"

"Getting rid of your blisters," Axel smiled with a small shrug as he looked up into the darkening sky. "It's getting late. Are you hungry?" The grumbling noise that came from the blonde's stomach gave it away as he blushed embarrassed from the loud noise. The redhead couldn't help but laugh only causing the human's blush to deepen to give the redhead's hair a run for its money.

"I'll take that as a yes." the dragon laughed with a huge grin, "Wait right here and I'll be back with some food." He jumped into the air transforming into his dragon form and turning invisible so that he wouldn't draw attention to himself.

Roxas' blue eyes scanned the shadow covered clearing before landing on the lake's surface. There was something in the water, but due to the lack of light he couldn't tell what it was. The only thing he knew was that it was coming closer to him, sometimes disappearing under the water's surface before emerging again. As the object got closer he noticed a set of gleaming green eyes that seemed to be beckoning him into the water. Slowly he made his way into the water, eyes never leaving the mysterious green ones. He stopped when the water reached his waist as the green eyes came closer until they were an arm length away. The water moved up like a tentacle with the green eyes meeting blue at eye level before the water began to take the form a women with long wavy icy blue hair, skin a soft sky blue, and ears that were not ears at all, but fish fins.

The women raised her right arm, long dark blue nails brushed along Roxas' cheek before slender fingers cupped it as she moved a step closer. Her white lips parted slightly as they curled into a smile, pupils covering the green like a moonless night covering the forest in darkness. She took another step closer so that their noses almost touched, her left arm wrapping around the blonde's slender waist while her right curled around his neck, something else under the water twisted its way through his legs. Before Roxas could take another breath, the woman pulled him into the water, her strong arms and fish tail tightly wrapped around him tighter than a boa constrictor as they sank towards the shadowy depths of the lake. The blonde struggled to break free in vain as the lack of oxygen was causing his mind to darken. He looked back at the girl whose smile was full of shark like teeth, eyes black as the pits of hell, nails as sharp as her teeth and hair of jelly fish stingers that were numbing his body. Roxas felt darkness closing in, his body numb and his lungs filling with water. Even though he was close to dying, the only thing he could think of was Axel.

**~0~**

Axel flew through the night sky scanning the forest for a deer or wild boar to catch for dinner. As he was flying, he thought about the stories that his parents told him about the times when there were such things as dragon riders. Every year during the late spring early summer, a group of humans would enter into one of the dragon territories hoping to find a dragon that would accept them. It was extremely rare for a dragon to accept a human because once the dragon was committed to a human, they were both connected through magic that was even older than the eldest of dragons. Those selected where known as dragon riders and were meant to keep peace throughout the world. Both of Axel parents had a dragon rider at one point in time, but their humans had died when the dragon riders attempted to stop dragon hunters.

According to his parents, the moment they met the eyes of the human they were connected, a bond that could only be broken by death. He had asked them what it felt like, but they said it couldn't be described and he would know if he ever got the chance. Of course they told him that it would be too risky to try to find a rider with dragon hunters everywhere and dragons now having to live in hiding. They especially warned him about allowing a human to ride him because then he would be slave to that human, not a partner of a dragon rider.

He knew that his parents would be shooting fire out of their butts if they knew that he had let a human ride him, but there was something different about the blonde. When he had first met the human a strange feeling came over him that he couldn't explain. It was like he could feel the human's pain and it made him angry that someone would dare harm him even though they had just met. There was this connection.

A shiver made its way up Axel's spine causing him to stop. Something was wrong, and it wasn't because he was in danger, Roxas was. He didn't know how he could tell, but he could. Without a second thought, he turned around attempting to return to the human as quick as possible hoping he would make it in time.

When Axel arrived back at the lake Roxas was no where to be found, but something was pulling him towards the water. Being a fire dragon he tried to avoid water at all costs except to drink, however, there was this feeling deep in his gut that was telling him the blonde was down there. A soft growl escaped through his sharp teeth as he dove toward the lake in a perfect dive, transforming into his 'human' form right before hitting the surface. The force from the dive propelled him deep into the water where he spotted a mermaid about to have Roxas as its dinner.

Using the rest of the force from the dive he shot himself towards the mermaid nails extended and the feathers on his tail stiff and sharper than any human blade. He twisted his body around aiming his tail covered with razor sharp feathers towards the mermaid's weak point, where the fish tail and human torso meet in the back. However, it didn't connect due to the tangled mess of jellyfish tentacles wrapping around his tail preventing it to come any closer.

The mermaid turned towards her attacker letting out a loud screech that seemed to echo through the water. Her tail wrapped tighter around the unconscious blonde as she focused her top half to attack her new prey caught in her jellyfish tentacle hair. A toothy shark smile made it look as if her face was going to split in two as she pulled Axel closer.

Axel let out a growl as he twisted his tail around cutting the tentacles that held it causing the mermaid to let out a painful scream letting go of Roxas. He took the chance to grab Roxas only to feel the sharp pain of thousands of teeth tearing through his upper left arm as a thousand tentacles stung him everywhere they made contact leaving hair thin red marks wherever they touched him. Struggling to break free, he swung his tail as best he could at the mermaid's weak spot hoping her defenses were down and he'd be able to break free.

He felt the mermaid let go of his left arm as her eyes closed and she drifted into the dark waters towards the bottom of the lake. With what energy he had left he used his wings and legs to return to the surface with a firm grip on the unconscious blonde. When he reached the surface, he gasped for air continuing to make his way to the shore. He picked Roxas up when it was shallow enough and ran a safe distance away from the lake before setting him down gently. Taking in a breath of air, he plugged the human's nose and exhaled into his mouth knowing the warmth of a fire dragon's breath would help evaporate the water.

Roxas took a huge gasp of air before coughing up the remaining water in his lungs. He felt someone help him sit up so he wouldn't choke on the water again. Eventually his breathing became steady and he looked to his left to see Axel in his 'human' form with a worried expression.

"What happened?" Roxas asked trying to remember what happened after the redhead had left, but everything was just blank.

"You were almost a mermaid's dinner." Axel frowned helping the human stand up and hiding his injuries to his left side. He was thankful that the shadows from the trees mostly covered him and humans' poor eyesight at night.

"Mermaids?" the blonde blinked curiously trying to comprehend what he just learned. It had been less than a day and he just found out that dragons and mermaids were real, but mermaids eat people for dinner instead of dragons like in the stories he had heard.

"Come on," the dragon sighed, "We should find a cave so we can get dried off." He shook himself similar to a dog causing water to fly everywhere and the human to recoil with a frown. Afterwards, he held his left arm with his right hand attempting to stop the bleeding until he could stop the bleeding properly.

"Are you okay?" Roxas asked noticing how the redhead was holding his left arm.

"Why do you ask?" Axel replied with a questioning eyebrow hoping the human would just drop the topic.

"You're holding your left arm," the blonde admitted, but that was only half the reason why he had a feeling the dragon was injured. There was a small pain in his upper left arm, like a bruise forming from running into the end of a table. Axel glanced over to Roxas who was holding his upper left arm and looking down at the ground as if deep in thought.

"You're not hurt are you?" the redhead asked as he pulled up the human's sleeve without asking. He let out a deep breath when he noticed that there was just the slightest hints of a bruise forming on the blonde's left arm. He didn't know why, but that anger built up again at the thought of not being able to protect Roxas. Yes, he had managed to keep the human from being mermaid food, but he still got injured which made Axel's blood boil.

"I'm fine Axel," Roxas sighed as he pulled his arm away only to grab the dragon's injured one. The dragon winced from the pain and Roxas could feel the blood gushing out of the deep wound. "But you're not. We need to stop the bleeding and wash it out so it doesn't get infected. First, we are going to need to find someplace to sleep. Then we'll build up a fire and get water boiling somehow." He didn't know what he was going to use to bandage the dragon's wound up because all he had was his own tattered clothes that were all wet.

"I know where we can rest." Axel sighed as he pushed passed Roxas through the shadow covered forest. Roxas let out a sigh as he followed the dragon with much difficulty due to his lack of night vision. Eventually they came upon a large cave at the base of a mountain, from the looks of it, Roxas assumed that it was at one point a mine for precious jewels. He figured the miners must have abandoned it when there were no more jewels left.

"Okay, I am going to find some wood for a fire," the blonde said with a smile, "You wait here and try to get some rest. I'll be right back." Before he could run off into the forest a strong hand grabbed his arm.

"Don't be stupid," the dragon growled, "There are many dangerous creatures that come out at night. Creatures that you stupid humans think are just legends and aren't dangerous. I bet you think that unicorns and fairies are sweet innocent creatures too. Like mermaids?"

"But we need fire and hot water to clean your wound." Roxas argued trying to get the redhead to release his arm with a stubborn expression. "You were hurt because of me and I'm not going to let you get sick because I didn't clean your wound. Now let go of me!"

"It wasn't your fault!" Axel yelled causing the younger male to still. "I should have known not to leave you alone so close to it being dark." He looked down at the ground with a heavy sigh, "I'm sorry Roxas... you almost died because of my stupidity. I won't let that happen again. As your dragon, I am sworn to protect you. I'm sorry."

"My dragon?" the human blinked, "I don't understand." The dragon smiled slightly knowing that Roxas knew nothing of the laws of dragons and humans. However, he didn't mind if Roxas was his master and he was now sworn to listen to his every word, Roxas was different.

"When a human rides a dragon," the redhead explained, "whether the dragon allows it or not, that dragon bound to that human. They must protect and obey the human even if it costs them their life."

"Like a slave?" Roxas asked which was confirmed by a slight nod from Axel, "Then why?"

"There is something different about you," the dragon said with a small smile, "When we first met I felt this connection... I can't explain it...it just... it just felt right to let you ride me." He scratched the back of his head in frustration since there was no way to describe what he felt when they met. He didn't even know why he was telling the human about the laws of dragons and humans because he could of been pretty much free if he didn't open his big mouth. After all, everyone knew that he was a free spirit which is why he left in the first place to explore instead of just hiding out with the rest of the dragons he lived with.

"Thank you," the human smiled, "because of your choice I was saved."

"You're welcome..." Axel said with a sigh not knowing what else to say.

"But now you have gotten us off topic," Roxas frowned with his arms crossed. "And if you are my dragon, then it is my responsibility to protect you as well, yes? Now no more arguments, I will stay close to get some fire wood and hopefully find a stream or river to get some water."

"Don't worry about the fire," the dragon laughed, "I'm a fire dragon silly. Besides, I think I'll be fine until the morning. Then we can worry about patching up the wound I got when that stupid mermaid bit me."

"But it will get infected and it's still bleeding." the blonde complained not wanting Axel to hurt himself more. "And if what you say is true then you have to listen to me. I didn't want to be like this with you, but you've left me no choice."

"Fine, but we'll deal with my wound my way. Agree?" the redhead asked holding out his good hand. Roxas contemplated it for a second and figured that it would probably be best if they compromised. He knew that Axel would be stubborn and follow him, order or no order which would only make matters worse.

"Deal," the human agreed shaking the dragon's hand. "Now what do you have in mind?"

"Something that doesn't require you to leave the cave." Axel grinned as he transformed into his dragon form to pull off a small, but long stalactite from the top of the cave. He then blew some fire heating the tip before handing it to Roxas and laying down blowing a small flame to give them some light.

"The heat will kill anything that will cause an infection and will also seal the wound." The dragon said as he smirked at his idea being so brilliant, but simple at the same time. Roxas just shook his head before stopping the bleeding with the heated stalactite in his hand. It didn't take long to stop the bleeding and to his surprise Axel didn't react much. He figured it must be because Axel was a fire dragon so burns wouldn't hurt him much, at least that is what he hoped. He ended up ripping off his pant legs to wrap the wound, hoping it would help even though Axel request he didn't. In the end they came to the agreement that if Roxas wanted to bandage up the wound with his pant legs, then he would have to sleep next to Axel. He was a fire dragon so he was naturally warm which would keep Roxas warm as well.

Roxas let out a small yawn as he curled into the black and red dragon's side. The feathers curled around him protecting him from the cold while the dragon's wing hid him from the sight of any magical creatures that might be looking for a nice human snack. Most wouldn't dare challenge a dragon, but there were some of the bolder ones out to make a name for themselves. Either way, Axel didn't want to risk failing to protect the human again. Doing one last scan of the forest outside, he felt it was safe enough to fall asleep.

* * *

**A/N:** Sorry for the late update. I had school and then work was kicking my ass recently...and still currently is. . fml. So yes, the long awaited chapter 2! XD yay!

Please review and tell me what you think.

~Love ya


	3. A Dragon! I Swear I saw a Dragon!

**~3~**

**A Dragon! I Swear I Saw a Dragon!**

The sun sluggishly lifted itself over the horizon bidding the moon good light, but welcoming the creatures of Earth with a brand new day. The sun's early rays danced over the sleeping fire dragon's feathers like little embers of a fire. It was from the sun that fire dragons got their energy like the water dragons got their energy from the moon or the earth dragons from the plants and so on and so forth. There once was a time when there were a great variety of different dragon types, dragons that could change into any living thing, dragons that could cover areas in light like the sun or cover areas in darkness as if it were night. This was not the case anymore and it was becoming frequently horrifying to find a hatchling, a newly hatched dragon, without any gifts. Dragons without any gifts of earth, water, air, fire, light, dark, animal etc, were known as nil, which in the ancient language of latin meaning nothing. It was the dragons that had taught the humans how to speak, not just latin, but other languages long forgotten, each having its own magical power when said. That was the time when words were more powerful than action. A time when every creature was treated equally. A time long, long ago.

The fire dragon woke with a heavy sigh of frustration thinking about some of his siblings that had hatched as nil. _What would it be like?_ he wondered, _To not be able to feel the sun the way he does, or the moon the way Demyx, a water dragon, does? To have no powers other than the natural gifts that all dragons receive?_ Just thinking of how it would feel made him sad even though fire dragons always celebrated the rising of the sun which gave them their greatest source of energy. He shook his head attempting to rid the dark thoughts swirling around in his mind before the sleeping human woke. He hadn't thought of the now legendary stories his parents told him every nest time for a least a 3 decades if not more. His bright green eyes fell upon the blonde in wonder. _Could it be possible to make those legends true once more?_ he pondered _Would it be possible to teach this human the ways of the dragon riders that I had heard so much about? _Axel was so lost in thought that he didn't even notice the human beginning to wake with a small yawn.

Roxas looked up at the dragon staring off into oblivion wondering what in the world he was thinking. He hoped there wasn't anything dangerous because Axel looked so serious right now.

"Good morning." Roxas said softly with a yawn.

"Morning." Axel replied with a smile transforming back into his human-like form. "I figured we should stop at the next town so you can get something nice to wear."

"But I don't have any money." the blonde replied sadly.

"Not to worry," the dragon laughed, "I have plenty of gold. Dragons poop gold!"

"Really?" Roxas asked with a look of wonder. "That's amazing!"

"I was just kidding about the pooping part," the redhead chuckled, "but dragons do have lots of gold. So don't worry about money."

"Are you sure?" the human said looking down, "I have no way of paying you back. I'm too young to get a job."

"Seriously Roxie," Axel smiled, "Don't worry about it. But I'll have to give you the gold now because I can't exactly stroll into town with you. I'll go with you to make sure nothing bad happens, but I'll be in my dragon form and invisible." He took out the gold coins that were used throughout this region of the world and handed a small bag of them to Roxas.

"Thank you..." Roxas said with a small smile, "I will pay you back someday I promise."

"Consider it a gift Roxie," the redhead grinned, "no payment required."

Roxas just nodded because he knew it was probably better than to argue, but he promised himself that someday he would pay Axel back. He watched Axel transform into his dragon form then shimmer a bit, but not turning invisible.

"I thought you said you were going to turn yourself invisible?" the blonde asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I am invisible..." the dragon answered with a confused expression, "You can see me?" He watched the human nod and wondered if it was because they were connected now. If Roxas was truly his master then he wouldn't be able to run away and probably meaning not being invisible to the blonde. He only hoped that everyone else still couldn't see him otherwise he would be in big trouble. One because humans would know dragons still exist. And two because if other dragons found out he exposed them they would be very very upset.

"Are you okay?" Roxas asked, "You're not sick are you? Oh, you are sick and it's my fault. Now you can't hide yourself from the world and then they will find you and hurt you. I must be the worst master in the history of masters."

"I'm fine," Axel chuckled, "It is probably because we are connected now so I can't hide from you. We won't know until we get to town so why don't we see."

"But what if they can see you?" the human cried, "I promised Namine to keep you safe because she doesn't want the dragons to go extinct. If they can see you then they are going to hunt you down and you're going to get hurt. It's going to be all my fault aga..."

"Roxie calm down," the redhead interrupted, transforming back into his human form to grab the young boy's shoulders. "I'll be fine. I'm more worried about you in those clothes with winter just around the corner. I may be a fire dragon, but I can't always keep you warm. You'll freeze to death."

"Axel," Roxas whispered as he looked down at the ground, "You're in more danger than I'll ever be. If you get hurt again because of me I'll never forgive myself. You've already done enough and for that I'm very grateful for, but you shouldn't have to babysit me. You're a dragon, you should be with your own kin." Even though everything he was saying was true, he still didn't want Axel to leave. It was for the best though, if Marluxia ever caught up it would be Axel that would be in the most danger. Marluxia could never kill him without getting away with it, but a dragon, Axel, was different. He Marluxia wouldn't see Axel as a person, but just another trophy.

"Roxas," Axel whispered as he lifted the blonde's chin up, "We met for a reason. Call it was you may, fate, destiny, but we were brought together for a reason. When I was off hunting last night, I came back as soon as you were in danger. It was like I could sense you needed me... You don't want to see me hurt and I don't want to see you hurt. So lets compromise and work together instead of fighting." He looked into those tear filled blue eyes and began to wipe away the tears.

"So to town then?" the blonde smiled as he wiped away the rest of his tears. "On our way there you should stay close to the forest and if someone doesn't notice you then you can walk with me on the road. If they do notice you can disappear into the forest quickly so they will second guess themselves. Deal?" He raised his hand out so they could shake on it.

"Deal," the redhead grinned taking Roxas' hand and shaking it. "But first let's get breakfast." He exited the cave with Roxas following close behind as they entered the forest to find something to eat.

"So you said unicorns and fairies aren't nice," the human asked running a bit to catch up to Axel, "What makes them so bad?"

"Fairies are the children of angels and demons," Axel explained, "They have all the beauty of an angel, but all the wickedness of a demon. (1) Unicorns are a very violent race who love war and bloodshed above anything else. According to my parents, back when magical creatures didn't have to hide unicorns were used in human wars all the time."

"Wow, it's different from what I've heard." Roxas replied trying to think of what else was different. "What other creatures are dangerous?"

"Too many to list." the redhead laughed, "But I guess since you're now a part of my world you'll have to learn. Nymphs live everywhere and they aren't the nicest of creatures, but they won't bother you as long as you don't bother them. But heaven forbid you enter their territory during mating season they'll skin you alive."

"So beware of unicorns, nymphs, fairies and mermaids." the blonde nodded trying to take everything in. He only hoped that fairies, mermaids, nymphs and unicorns looked the same as in the books he used to read about them.

"Don't worry Roxie," the dragon grinned, "I won't be making the mistake again of leaving you by yourself."

"But I've never run into any magical creature before," Roxas said, "Why now?"

"Truthfully, I don't really know." Axel sighed hopping over a fallen tree with ease and grace. "It is probably because of me, but other than that I don't have a clue."

Roxas was about to say something, but Axel turned to him with a finger over his lips signaling to be silent. He looked into the small clearing to see a doe drinking water from the stream. He watched Axel pull a feather from his tail with instantly turned stiff and sharp to look like a deadly black blade. Quietly, Axel positioned himself in a better angle before throwing the feather at the doe slicing it's neck open enough to cause it to loose a good amount of blood and die almost instantly.

"I'll cook you a leg," the redhead said pulling out the feather to use to skin the dear and cut a leg off for Roxas.

"Are you just going to swallow the rest whole or something?" Roxas asked with a curious look.

"Pretty much," the dragon grinned, "I am a dragon after all." He took the feather and cut off the front leg of the doe before skinning it so Roxas would be able to eat it. He had learned over the years that humans didn't like skin on their meat and didn't like it uncooked. Once he was satisfied with the leg, he transformed into his dragon form to cook it. When he was done he handed it to Roxas with a grin before devouring the rest of the doe in one quick gulp.

"thanks," the blonde said as he took the leg and watched Axel eat the rest. "I don't think I'll be able to finish all this though,"

"I'll eat what you don't," Axel grinned.

Roxas thought it was odd seeing him grin in his dragon form because it was so different form a human grin. He pushed the thought from his mind as he began to eat what he could of the leg. What he didn't finish Axel ended up eating and then they were on their way to the road which would take them to the closest town. They followed Roxas' plan with Axel remaining invisible by the forest line just in case his invisibility didn't work anymore. Thankfully, it was only Roxas would could see him because all the people on the road just ignored Axel even if he was acting crazy to try and get their attention.

"Well," Axel grinned, "I guess they can't see me."

"That's good," Roxas agreed, "but when we get to town you have to be careful."

"Okay, okay." the redhead agreed.

When they finally made it to the town there were people getting ready for the day. Men and women were going to work while the kids lined up for school. The people of the town looked at Roxas strangely because he was in torn clothing and obviously wasn't from the small town. They also noticed a strange sound that was coming from behind the boy, like something was being dragged, but the couldn't see where the sound was coming from.

Roxas made his way into an alley mainly filled with crates to hide him from view. When they were completely out of view Axel appeared in his human form with a raised eyebrow.

"What wrong?" the redhead asked curiously.

"You are making noise by dragging your tail. The people are giving me weird looks because of it." the blonde whispered hoping not to draw more attention to himself than he already had. He knew that they were probably already looking at him because of his torn clothing, dirty face and completely alone. Even though he was fifteen, he only looked twelve or thirteen. And even if he did look his age, people would wonder why he is traveling by himself without any adults with him.

"Sorry," Axel shrugged, "Force of habit. I'll try to be quieter."

Before Roxas could answer and old man with a long white beard, strange blue clothing and a pointed blue hat wobbled into the alley. He looked at Roxas then to Axel, then back to Roxas then back to Axel. The old man's eyes widened from behind his circular glasses as he pointed towards Axel who was still standing there not even bothering trying to become invisible again.

"A d-d-dragon." the old man stuttered, "I can't believe it!"

"Axel!" Roxas hissed, "disappear!"

"Oh, right!" the redhead chuckled before disappearing in his dragon form so only Roxas could see him.

"A dragon?" the blonde asked with a puzzled face as he looked around. "I don't see a dragon."

"Don't mess with me boy!" the old man warned, "I know what I saw. I knew dragons weren't extinct!"

"Dragons are only legends you crazy old man," Roxas laughed as he went to exit the alley way and caught the distinct smell of alcohol on the old man. "You're drunk and seeing things. Get home before you have a heart attack over an imaginary dragon." He exited the alleyway with Axel following in toe leaving the old man mumbling to himself about dragons. When they were a safe distance away, and in a small secluded corner of the town by the school he gave the dragon a glare.

"You have to be more careful!" the blonde whispered, "You're just lucky it was a drunk old man that saw you and why didn't you disappear the instant you saw him?"

"He is a wizard," the dragon replied cooly, "He could see through my invisibility if he really wanted, but since he was drunk I doubt he would have been able to.

"A wizard?" Roxas inquired.

"Yes, a wizard." Axel answered, "and a powerful one at that. Although I doubt he is any harm when he is drunk."

Roxas was about to answer, but a young woman stormed up to him with her hands on her hips. She was wearing a pink dress that went down just past her knees. Her brown hair was pulled back with a pink bow into a ponytail braid with two pieces of hair hanging on both sides of her face that couldn't quite be pulled back.

"What are you doing out of school young man?" the woman asked with a stern face.

"Um, I don't live here miss." Roxas answered hoping she would just go away, but from the look of it she wasn't.

"Oh?" she said with a perfectly thin eyebrow raised high. "Then where might you're parents be?"

"I don't have any parents..." he said wondering why he was being honest with her. "They died a while ago."

"Are you traveling alone?" the woman asked with a concerned look.

"Yes miss," Roxas answered looking away from her.

"'tsk, 'tsk a young boy shouldn't be without a home," she said, "Why don't you come stay with me? I'm one of the school teachers, but I live in the lighthouse with my father. What do you think?"

"I don't know," he said not knowing whether to trust the woman or not. He looked up at Axel's head towering above him which nodded in approval to go with the woman. He looked back at the woman in pink and slowly nodded.

"I'm Aerith," the woman said with a bright smile. "Why don't you come to school today? You can wash up in the bathroom and I can give you some spare clothes we keep just in case."

"Roxas" he said with a nod as he followed Aerith into the school leaving Axel outside to await his return. He only hoped that Axel wouldn't get into too much trouble while he was gone.

* * *

**A/N:**

(1) Yes I made fairies like the one in the Mortal Instruments books if you have read them. They are pretty good. :)

Anyways, you should all give me a slap on the wrist for updating another story instead of studying...or you know, put my muse into a coma for like a week or so. God, I swear that whenever I need to do something I do something else. What is wrong with me? ...everything... nevermind lol! Oh! I just downloaded a cat ringtone thing for my phone to see what my cats would do. OMG it has like 20 different cat noises and my one cat freaks out! So hilarious! she started looking for another cat in the room! hahahahahaha. Wow, I am way to hyper, so hyper I can hardly type right now. You'd be amazed at how many errors I have been making. XD

Soooooo... I hope you like the chapter! More updates are on their way, we will see. Wish me luck on finals! if you don't I won't update anymore! jk jk. I wouldn't do that no... I would delete my acount! bwahahahahahahaha... I really have to stop eating ring pops...they are bad for me. And they are hard to type with.

All Hail Ring Pops! *turns into a ring pop*


	4. Night Soaring, White Confusion

**~4~**

**Night Soaring, White Confusion**

Roxas looked around the lighthouse then jumped when he heard some kind of explosion coming from upstairs followed by smoke billowing down into the living room. Aerith shook her head as she opened the front door to let out most of the smoke before going upstairs. Roxas wondered what in the world could have happened and only hoped it wasn't Axel playing some kind of trick just because he was bored. School hadn't been too long, but it was more than obvious that Axel was annoyed at being left alone for such a long period of time. Of course it had been the dragon's idea in the first place so Roxas couldn't understand why he was acting so irritated.

"How many times have I told you father," Aerith's voice said from somewhere above the blonde, "You shouldn't be conducting your magic experiments in the lighthouse, especially when you have been drinking those weird potions!"

"Well someone has to make sure they are good," complained the voice of an old man. "Can't have me selling bad potions to customers, now can I? Merlin's Beard! Where is that Archimedes?"

"Father," Aerith sighed, "Stop saying Merlin's Beard, that is your name silly."

"By Jove you're right. Archimedes!" Merlin yelled coming down the stairs with Aerith following close behind. "Blast that old owl always disappearing when I need him. He always knows where I put my books."

"Father," the brunette smiled, "I'd like you to meet someone. This is Roxas and he will be staying with us. Roxas this is my father."

Roxas and the old man examined each other realizing they have both already met. Merlin scratched his chin as he looked at the boy who had a dragon with him earlier that day. He figured the boy's dragon was probably outside, but the boy had already denied having a dragon so it was doubtful that he would admit it now.

"You know there is a cave under the lighthouse that I sometimes use for my magic." Merlin said hoping the dragon would get the idea and go down there to sleep. It would be bad for a dragon to sleep outside with no protection, and if he guessed correctly it was a fire dragon. It was going to rain tonight and water weakened fire dragon's as well as the night.

"You're that drunk old man I met earlier," Roxas frowned, "What are you mumbling about now?"

"First off young man," the old wizard scolded, "I am not a drunk. That funny smell was from the potions I make thank you very much. And second, I was saying that because it is going to rain tonight and fire and water don't go well together."

"Father, what are you talking about?" Aerith laughed softly. "Did the fumes get to you again?"

"No, no," Merlin said shooing his daughter away, "I'm as fit as a kettle." His eyes connected with the young boy's and they exchanged a certain understanding that Aerith didn't seem to notice.

"Well," Aerith smiled, "I'll start making dinner, you two can chat. I'll call you up when it is ready." The two males watched her disappear upstairs before their eyes met again.

"Take a walk with me," the old wizard suggested as he went outside expecting the blonde to follow. Roxas followed behind wanting to ask Aerith's father some questions and hope that he could convince the old man that Axel was just a figment of his imagination. Though, he doubted that he could pull that off because the man seemed very wise even if he was a little crazy. The two stopped at the edge of the cliff which overlooked the ocean.

"You can trust me boy," Merlin said, "I won't do anything to harm you or your dragon."

"My name isn't boy, it's Roxas." Roxas growled, "And what makes you think that I have a dragon?"

"Don't jest me!" the old wizard shouted, "I was once a dragon rider during the war. I know a dragon when I see one. I know what it sounds like when a dragon lands and takes off. I know how a dragon's wings change the wind. And I can smell the fire coming from your dragon because mine was a fire dragon as well."

Roxas just stood there looking at the old man with his mouth hanging open. He was so shocked from what he just heard that he was at a loss for words. It had never crossed his mind that he would actually meet a person that knew all about dragons besides Marluxia, but the two were different. Where Marluxia was all about killing dragons, the old man had actually fought with them as a dragon rider.

"Roxas," Merlin sighed as he closed his eyes. "You have to know many things to keep your dragon safe. Letting your dragon enter a town like that was very irresponsible of you. You were just lucky that I was the one to see him."

"He was the one that followed me," Roxas pouted as he crossed his arms like a grumpy child.

"You two are connected now," the old dragon rider smiled, "You have to look out for each other. Go for a ride with your dragon, learn to feel the air currents and how he adjusts to it. Learn how he angles his body to turn. This is the first task I give you."

"What are you my tutor now?" the blonde retorted.

"Yes," Merlin said with a stern expression, "because I am going to teach you the way of the dragon riders. I will not allow you to have a dragon and know nothing of how to take care of him. We'll start first thing tomorrow morning, eight hours a day, we'll have six hours for school and two for study period." He summoned the old sword that he used to use back in the days of his dragon rider years. Looking down at the sword brought back memories, some good, some bad.

"What?" Roxas exclaimed.

"Once you become a true dragon rider you will have your own sword." the old wizard smiled sadly ignoring the boy's outrage, "It is the strongest bond between a dragon and human. You can use this one for now. It is just an ordinary sword now that my dragon is gone. Remember to always bring a weapon with you, Roxas, because you never know when you're going to need it." He handed the long medieval looking sword over to the young boy just as a fat brown owl landed on the mailbox next to them.

"Who's the kid?" the owl asked causing Roxas to jump with surprise. Roxas could understand talking mythical creatures, but just an ordinary owl talking scared him more than anything else.

"His name is Roxas," Merlin answered with a grin, "Roxas this is Archimedes. I'm glad you're finally back, Archimedes, because you are going to go flying with him and his dragon. His first task is to learn how fly with his dragon, not just on his dragon."

"What?" Archimedes hooted angrily, "Why do I have to do it? I thought we were done with training!"

"Because I can't fly," the old wizard noted, "Just for a few hours before the sunsets."

"You can too fly you old crack pot!" the owl said puffing up his feathers in anger.

"Ah, but I am not nearly as good as you, a natural flier." Merlin said cheerily.

"No, no, no, no!" Archimedes huffed. "I've had it with helping train dragon riders! I thought we were finally finished after the war ended!"

"Archimedes, I'll turn you into a human," the old wizard threatened, "Then you won't be able to fly at all!"

"Hmph! You wouldn't dare!" the owl argued.

"I will!" Merlin yelled, "So help me I will!"

"All right, All right!" Archimedes hissed at Merlin before turning towards Roxas. "So where is your dragon?"

Before Roxas could answer the question Axel appeared behind him in his human form with a puzzled look on his face. He had never thought it possible for Roxas to be trained as a dragon rider. Granted, he didn't know much about dragon riders to begin with. He only knew what he had heard from his parents, but they had left things out or didn't explain other things. Though there was no denying that he felt connected to Roxas even before he allowed the human to ride him. Maybe they were meant to be dragon and dragon rider and meeting this former dragon rider was that proof.

"Now go on," Merlin encouraged shooing them away. "You will be tested on what you learned tomorrow. Both of you." He smiled at the dragon and his rider before skipping back to the lighthouse. Archimedes rolled his eyes and groaned before taking off into the sky to hover above the dragon and human.

"Well, hurry it up!" the owl shouted, "Haven't got all day now!"

Roxas frowned at having to listen to an owl, but figured there was no getting around it. He strapped the sword to his back as Axel transformed into his dragon form and lowered his neck so Roxas could get on. Once the blonde was settled Axel took off into the sky following the owl, who had taken off ahead of them.

"No, no, no!" Archimedes screamed, "Weren't you listening to a thing boy? You have to feel how the dragon flies! Close your eyes and listen to the slight changes he makes to glide. Feel the strong vibrations of his wings. Come on, give it a whirl!"

Roxas let out a frustrated sigh at being screamed at two seconds into the 'training session' if one could even call it that. Though he did what he was told and closed his eyes to try and listen and feel. Surprisingly, he could slightly hear the difference in the wind as it hit Axel's wings . He felt Axel bank left and automatically felt himself leaning in that direction while lowering himself closer to Axel's body.

"Do you feel and hear it boy?" hooted the owl. "A dragon rider isn't someone who just rides a dragon, but someone who becomes one with a dragon. Eventually you'll learn how to fight while flying as well, but for now focus on just flying."

Roxas nodded as he closed his eyes again to concentrate on every little thing that Axel was doing when he was flying. It took Archimedes about an hour of constant yelling to finally think the blonde was good enough to return back to lighthouse while complaining that he was getting too old for this stuff. Roxas and Axel chose to let him fly ahead a bit so his complaining wouldn't be heard too much.

"Axel are you ok?" the blonde asked wondering why the dragon had been so quiet during the training. "You're awfully quiet."

"I'm fine," Axel chuckled, "I was just thinking that it's amazing we are going to be dragon and dragon rider."

"Why didn't you ever tell me about the dragon riders before?" Roxas asked, "You only told me that a dragon becomes a slave to the human that rides him. But it isn't always that way is it?"

"I wasn't sure if you were my dragon rider," the dragon admitted, "My parents said they could never explain what they felt when they met their dragon riders for the first time so I had no idea what it would be like if I ever met mine. Of course they warned me to never mingle with humans because it was too dangerous now, but I was never good at listening."

"Well I'm glad to be your rider," the blonde smiled as he curled up in Axel's warm feathers.

"Me too," Axel agreed, "I think I finally understand what my parents meant..." He stopped before he could finish because something didn't feel right. They were still over the ocean that was a cold front in the season of fall, the wind shouldn't be this warm especially when they were flying so low. There was only one creature in the world could change the temperature all around it. A phoenix.

"Axel what's wrong?" Roxas asked feeling the sudden rigidness in the dragon's body. Before he could hear all of Axel's answer there was a ear piercing screech from above as a large bird emerged from the clouds above them. He shook his head trying to fix his vision, because it looked as if the bird was made of fire.

"Hold on Roxas!" the dragon shouted over the bird's deafening screech, but Roxas wasn't listening. The bird was just as large as if not bigger than Axel was and it was gaining on them.

"A phoenix!" Archimedes screeched in terror, "Impossible! To Merlin's cave! Hurry!" He took off expecting the dragon behind him to follow and hoped that his old wings could fly fast enough.

Roxas kept his body close to Axel's knowing it would help with speed which was too much for Archimedes, but the phoenix just seemed to pass him as if the owl wasn't even there. He looked back into the glowing amber eyes that seemed to stand out through the fire which made up its body. It was too close to them and in a matter of minutes it would have them. He wouldn't let Axel be hurt again, he couldn't. Without even thinking, he drew the sword that Merlin gave him and got up to fight. He ran along Axel's back to give him enough speed to jump onto the phoenix's face and aim for the firebird's eyes. He made contact, but the flames from the bird's body was burning him and he couldn't hold on.

"Roxas!" Axel roared as he looked back to see the blonde jumping onto the phoenix's face. With a quick loop he turned around just in time to see Roxas falling from the now blind phoenix covered in flames. He pulled his wings together to dive, hoping he was quick enough before either the flames or the sea claimed the human. He was able to grab Roxas with his large clawed 'hand' which immediately snuffed out the flames, but the burns were over most of the boy's body. A loud screech came behind him, but he couldn't react quick enough as the phoenix pushed him the rest of the way into the ocean. Before the firebird could get away from the water, Axel turned his long neck and grabbed the bird's foot dragging it down with them. The only difference was that phoenixes couldn't stand water at all where fire dragons could tolerate it for a short period of time. Once the phoenix hit the water it was game over and Axel sprang out of the water glad to see the lighthouse was near.

Axel looked down at Roxas in his claws and hoped that the boy could hold on just a while longer. When he entered the cave, he put Roxas down before gathering spit and spitting on the boy. Dragon saliva could heal anything from a zit all the way to a 3rd degree burn. The burns started to heal and once healed it looked like nothing ever happened besides most of the clothing being burned off. Once he knew the human was okay, it was then that he felt searing pain go through his own body causing him to collapse.

"Axel!" Roxas screamed when the first thing he saw when he woke up was the large black and red dragon collapsing. He ran over to see what was wrong and noticed the dragon's left wing was bent in an impossible way. "Your wing, what happened?" Tears started to run down his cheeks because he knew Axel probably got hurt because of him.

"Step aside Roxas," Merlin said pushing the boy out of the way. "'tsk 'tsk, flying, even a short distance, with a broken wing and wet feathers. You should know better Axel. But first we have to get you dried off and warmed up before you freeze to death. Roxas, Archimedes, grab the blankets." He waved his staff and said the spell that dried the dragon off in the blink of an eye.

"Here are the blankets." the blonde said holding out the blankets Archimedes pretty much dropped on him.

"Good, good," the old wizard said, "Now cover him up. Then come over here to help me set his wing. Difficult business setting a broken wing."

Roxas did as he was told putting the blankets over Axel with Archimedes' help. He placed the last blanket around the dragon's long neck, then gently stroked the soft feathers.

"I'm sorry Axel." the blonde cried. "It's all my fault that you got hurt."

"It's okay, Roxie." Axel sighed as he opened his large green eyes to look at the human crying next to him. "Dragons heal fast. Are you okay?"

"Yes," Roxas sniffled, "thanks to you." He knew the dragon had done something to heal the burns because he was still covered in what he was positive to be saliva. Gently, he wrapped his small arms around Axel's long thick neck and cried into his black feathers.

"Boy hurry up," Merlin scolded, "We need to get his wing set or else he'll get worse. Come, come."

Roxas did has he was told and walked over to the old man who was standing next to Axel's broken wing. Together they were able to set it back in its proper place and bind it with some wood and old cloth that Merlin summoned. This reminded Roxas that he had lost Merlin's sword in the fight with the phoenix.

"Merlin," the blonde whispered, "I'm sorry I lost your sword. I know it meant a lot to you."

"Don't worry boy," the old dragon rider chuckled, "You forget that I am a wizard and a powerful one at that. The sword is back in my room. Now come up with me to the lighthouse so we can eat and then get you to bed. I'll send Aerith to bring something down for Axel."

"I want to stay here with Axel." Roxas begged as he went back next to the black and red dragon's head. He wrapped his arms around Axel's thick neck stubbornly to show he wasn't going anywhere.

"Let him stay father," Aerith's voice said from the cave entrance. She entered the cave holding a tray of food with a brilliant smile. "You should understand how he feels. I brought down some food for both of them." She walked over to where the blonde was sitting and placed the tray next to him.

"Thank you," the blonde boy said with a small smile.

"You're welcome." the brunette smiled, "I will bring down some blankets for you. Now eat up." She took the larger bowl and set it down in front of Axel before she exited the cave.

"You still have much to learn boy," Merlin sighed shaking his head, "Until Axel recovers books you will be studying."

"We can study here right?" Roxas asked not wanting to leave Axel's side until he recovered.

"Of course boy," the old wizard chuckled as he summoned a blanket around the blonde. "Now eat, then get some rest." He gave the two a smile before leaving the cave himself. The boy and dragon ate in silence not knowing what to say to each other. They had been together for a short time, but had already been through so much. After they were finished Roxas moved the dishes to the other side of the cave by weird bubbling liquids.

"I really am sorry Axel," the blonde sighed as he plopped back down next to Axel wrapping the blanket around him.

"It's okay," Axel smiled with a yawn. He wrapped his long neck around Roxas like a snake to keep the boy warm. "Now go to sleep Roxas."

"Thank you Axel," Roxas yawned, "for everything. You're the best thing that has happened to me." He let out another yawn as he curled up in the dragon's warm feathers and fell asleep.

Axel sleepily smiled at Roxas' words before falling asleep himself glad that his rider was safe.

**~0~**

Marluxia entered the castle that was hidden in the forest of Nobodies. It was a place that only dragon hunters could enter because there were enchantments placed everywhere to keep anything unwanted out. A terrible cry from a griffin echoed through the castle walls, music to his ears. Although most thought the glory days of hunting dragons was over, there were still other creatures that could make a good profit on the black market. Of course they were never as profitable as a dragon, but in order to hunt a dragon he would need help. No one ever took down a dragon alone which was why he was here at the organization's headquarters.

"Maluxia," said a deep voice from above him, "It has been quite some time."

The pink haired man looked up the banister to see the leader of the organization coming towards him wearing the same long black coat all dragon hunters wore. He still looked the say with his dark skin, contrasting white hair and golden eyes. Just as his former leader, Xemnas, was in front of him the rest of the organization appeared out of nowhere with their hoods drawn so Marluxia couldn't see their faces.

"What brings you back here?" Xemnas asked as he circled his former employee. "I thought you didn't want anything to do with the organization unless it was for hunting dragons. Unless, you have found a dragon and have come to ask for our help."

"I have found a dragon." Marluxia stated, "My daughter has the power to see things others can't. I overheard her telling the young boy I adopted that dragon's aren't extinct, but have learned to turn invisible to the human eyes. That boy is with a dragon now. If we find the boy, we find our first dragon, and from there we learn how to see through their invisibility. The glory days of hunting dragons have returned."

"And Larxene isn't going to participate?" the leader inquired.

"She is taking our daughters to her sisters and will join us shortly." the pink haired man answered.

"You didn't want to bring your daughters?" Xemnas replied with a scolding manner. "You said that one of your daughters knew about the dragons. Why not bring her to help us in the search?"

"She won't listen," Marluxia growled annoyed that his own daughter wouldn't listen to him.

"We have ways of making people talking." the leader chuckled, "I'm surprised Larxene hasn't had any influence on the girl yet. She was always the best at making people do what we want."

Larxene appeared in the doors just then, as if the mention of her name in the glory days could summon her anywhere. She cleared the gap between her and her husband with a confident grace dragging something behind her. Maluxia looked at his wife then behind her to see what she brought only to notice Namine standing there with her eyes to the floor and dried teared cheeks.

"She'll talk," Larxene beamed. "We had a nice mother daughter bonding time." She pulled out a sketchbook from her black dragon hunter robes and handed it to the organization leader with a proud grin.

"Have I forgotten to tell you how amazing you are?" Marluxia grinned at his cunning wife.

"Enough of the love crap." Xemnas hissed, "This is perfect." He looked down at the sketch of a small town with a lighthouse on the cliff. Underneath the lighthouse was a cave and in that cave was the drawing of a dragon. The dragon was small compared to the rest of the picture, but there was no denying it was a dragon. His lips curled into a sinister smile as he could almost see himself killing a dragon once more. Most people knew this small town because of its lighthouse and it would only take a two day ride on griffins to get there.

"Saddle up the griffins," Xemnas grinned, "We got ourselves a dragon to catch."

* * *

**A/N:**

OH NO! MR. BILL! Just kidding. Me and my sister have been watching Mr. Bill for some odd reason, followed by glee...yeah...Oh how my mind wanders.

Anyways, I am just glad to have this out of my head because there was no way I could study otherwise. So enjoy! I am off to study!

*skips away to find the study wizard of oz or merlin!*


	5. Revelation and Destiny

**A/N: SPOILER ALERT! For Birth by Sleep!**

Okay, so if you haven't played Birth by Sleep there might be a few** SPOILERS **ahead. That is if I can work things out correctly. XD haha, that game still has me going for loops, but I really don't want to play it again because it took forever to load all the scenes. XP That and Ventus kind of bugs me...but that will be our little secret. shhhh XD Anyways, excuse me for mixing things up because I haven't played the game since it was first released in Japan...so yeah... that and I needed it to work for this story. But I think I might have to play it again, but for the hell of it... yikes, I am going to have my patience tested once again. XD hahaha Enjoy!

* * *

**~5~**

**Revelation and Destiny**

Merlin listened closely to what Archimedes was telling him about the phoenix attacking them during training. They both knew that phoenixes never came to this part of the world with it being so close to winter unless there were volcanoes in the area which there weren't. The only reason why a phoenix would be in their area was if someone had sent it, but the question was who. There weren't many wizards or witches that wielded the power to control a phoenix, he wasn't even sure if he could himself. Even if they discovered the identity of the wizard or witch that summoned the phoenix there was a more troubling question at hand. Why? He was certain whoever it was knew that dragons still existed, so maybe the person wasn't after Axel. Maybe the person was after Roxas.

"Do you think he was after the boy?" Merlin asked Archimedes who was currently walking back and forth on his perch because he was still going crazy about the entire incident.

"The boy?" the owl inquired. "You don't think he can wield a keyblade, do you?"

"It is possible," the old wizard stated, "keyblade wielders do develop earlier on, but he did meet his dragon late. It is true that they have a bond, but they haven't reached the level of being able to create weapons using their bond. It would make sense for a keyblade to appear at a time like this."

"It takes most years to achieve that!" Archimedes exclaimed followed by a series of annoyed hoots. "Not only is he starting his training late, but he isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. Axel has already broken a wing! A wing! You know how big of a deal that is! He was lucky it was a simple break or else his flying days would have been over! The boy is too old, too old I tell you to be trained as a dragon rider!"

"And would you rather the two go out without training? Sounds far more dangerous to me." Merlin asked getting up from his chair so he could search through his books. He had a dragon rider book on keyblade wielders that would hopefully shed some light on the situation.

"No," the owl sighed, "but he has to be trained quickly if someone is coming after him. He'll get both of them killed if he doesn't."

"Yes, this is true," the old dragon rider agreed skimming through the hundreds of book titles. "He will start tomorrow with his reading. Axel won't be able to fly for a least a day or two depending on how quick he heals. Though I doubt they should do much flying until the boy knows how to fight."

"Jumping off into the face of phoenix," Archimedes huffed causing his feathers to poof out. "What an idiot. Just because his dragon is fire proof doesn't mean he is."

"Archimedes," Merlin sighed, "Do you know where I put that book?"

"You mean this one?" Aerith giggled as she handed her father his book back. "Sorry, I thought I would do some research. Ever since I met Roxas I felt as if I had seen him somewhere. It brought me back to this book about the legend of the first dragon riders who wielded the keyblades, and the first true keyblade master. Remember father, you use to tell me it as a bedtime story." She gave her father a smile as she opened the book to the page that caused Roxas to look so familiar to her and turned it so her father could see. On the page was the picture of the first true keyblade master, Ventus, and the resemblance between him and Roxas was unreal.

"By Jove!" Archimedes and Merlin exclaimed in unison.

"It can't be," the owl said completely flabbergasted. "Do you think the boy is Ventus' great great great great times a million grandson? That would mean that... he couldn't be... could he?"

"Xehanort?" the old dragon rider questioned curiously. "It has been hundreds of thousands of years since that historic event has happened. It isn't possible that he is still alive, but maybe a grandson of his is at work?"

"I don't think so," the brunette smiled, "You forget how many times I have heard all the legends of the dragon riders. One legend says that as long as a dragon rider's dragon is alive, the dragon rider will not die and live the life of a dragon. Everyone knows that dragons pretty much live forever."

"It is just a legend, girl." Archimedes chided, "You have to get your head out of the clouds."

"But all legends come from truth," Aerith argued with a confident smile. "The truth only becomes a legend because people no longer believe it is the truth or the truth has been hidden for a reason. You really think that the grand dragon would like humans living as long as dragons? Dragon riders have never lasted long, either the rider is killed or the dragon. You would need both to make the legend true."

"Calm down Aerith," the girl's father interjected politely, "Are you really accusing the grand dragon of killing dragons and dragon riders?"

"Not exactly," she replied as she began flipping through the book once more. "But I believe that he must know Xehanort isn't dead." Once she found the beginning of the story about the war against Xehanort she smiled.

"No one knows why Xehanort chose to go down the path of darkness," Aerith narrated. "but it was because of him that the world almost fell back into the hands of darkness once again...

Xehanort, Yen Sid and Eraqus were the first three dragon riders to wield the powerful weapon known as the keyblade. No one knows the reason for the keyblades appearing, but it is believed that they will appear when needed most. For before the three heroes appeared, the world had fallen into dark times. A time when darkness controlled hearts and light was only a myth. Together, the three keyblade heroes banished the darkness and brought light back into hearts. However, little did they know that the darkness still remained.

Five years passed and even though light still ruled hearts five other keyblade wielders appeared. Yen Sid agreed to train the eldest, prince Mickey, in both the ways of the keyblade and in wizardry. For the boy showed skill in both and Yen Sid was the only of the three heroes who knew wizardry. So Eraqus and Xehanort were left to teach the rest, Terra, Aqua, Ventus and Vanitus. Eraqus agreed to take charge of the two oldest while Xehanort trained the two young twins. (1)

After a year Xehanort became frustrated with Ventus because he claimed the boy was too kind to be trained in battle. Eraqus argued that Xehanort could learn something from the young Ventus, but Xehanort wouldn't listen. He left the dragon rider castle to train with the boy's twin, Vanitus, who showed exceptional skills in the art of fighting. Eraqus was left to train Ventus along with Terra and Aqua. However, Ventus was overcome with sadness after his twin left so Eraqus had no choice but to erase the boy's memories of his twin.

Years past and the three keyblade wielders under Eraqus grew up to be talented dragon riders. However, Eraqus feared that he could sense darkness in Terra's heart just like he sensed it in Xehanort and Vanitus before they left. He now understood the reason for the new keyblade heroes. For light always casts a shadow of darkness to follow and darkness was taking hold of hearts once more. Eraqus confronted Terra about it, but it only led Terra to leave to find Xehanort.

Ventus followed Terra in fear of being left behind and loosing his best friend. Eraqus, afraid of Ventus running into his twin, set Aqua to bring him back and keep an eye on Terra as well. Eraqus knew that there was something different about the twins and had a terrible nightmare that if the two fought, the world would fall back into darkness.

Ventus returned to the castle a few days later demanding to know if what he had heard from Xehanort was true. It is said that Xehanort believed that the twins held the key to create the ultimate keyblade and would stop at nothing to possess it. Eraqus had failed to stop Xehanort the first time, but he wouldn't let himself fail a second. He believed that if Ventus was destroyed the darkness would vanish with him, so he attacked. However, Terra intervened and could not understand why Eraqus would hurt Ventus. Terra sent Ventus away to protect him, and killed Eraqus.

Little is known about the battle that took place afterwards, but this is known. Terra, Aqua and Ventus fought against Xehanort and Vanitus to keep darkness out of hearts. While they battled in a different plane, war took hold of the world and fell into darkness. For three days darkness once more took back control of hearts, but on the fourth day light filled the world and banished darkness to the heartless forest. No one knows what happened to the three heroes or the two villians, but it is said that when the keyblade is needed again, it will appear." Aerith gave her father and the owl a brilliant grin.

"We also know that after the battle, both Yen Sid and Prince Mickey could no longer wield the keyblade." she stated, "The world has been fine until the dragon hunters started appearing and now we are in another age where darkness is taking hold. Zack already sent me word that his apprentice dragon rider just revealed to be a keyblade wielder!"

"You didn't tell me this," Merlin replied a little hurt that his daughter wouldn't tell him important things such as a keyblade appearing. "But it might be possible that Yen Sid and Prince Mickey lost the ability to wield the keyblade because their dragons died in the war."

"I just got the letter father," Aerith argued, "Besides, no one knows anything about the keyblades except that they hold a great deal of power. I really doubt that they lost their power because their dragons died."

"Enough keyblade talk!" Archimedes screeched, "Our main concern is that someone is after the boy! It might be Xehanort, it might not, but regardless we have an idea why. Girl, send the a letter back to that Zack of yours and tell him what we know."

"I already wrote the letter," the brunette smiled as she pulled out an envelope. "But I don't trust just a regular messenger bird to take it. Archimedes, will you take it to the dragon hideout?"

"What!" the owl howled in outrage, "Do I look like a messenger bird to you?"

"She does have a point Archimedes," Merlin suggested, "You are smart enough not to be caught or followed. I'm sure someone is watching the place closely. They were wise enough to attack when the boy and dragon were outside my magical barrier."

"Fine," Archimedes hissed, "Only because you'll end up threatening to turn me human." He snatched the letter out of Aerith's hand viciously before flying out the open window into the sunrise.

"I better go wake the boy," the old dragon rider said as he watched the owl's form disappear completely. "We have lots to go over."

**~0~**

Roxas let out a small yawn as he automatically woke up just before the sun rose over the horizon. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips watching Axel's sleeping dragon form subconsciously snuggling closer. Just as the first few rays of sun escaped into the darkness, Axel let out a loud yawn that sounded like a tired roar.

"Morning," Roxas yawned, "How does your wing feel?"

"It feels fine," Axel answered, "I should be able to fly by tomorrow since there isn't any clouds to cover the sun today." He shook off the blankets that kept the sun from touching his feathers.

"Do your get your power from the sun or something?" the blonde asked curiously.

"Yeah, something like that." the dragon chuckled. "I can still summon fire without the sun like during the winter or at night, but it isn't as powerful. I also can't heal as quickly without the sun because for a fire dragon each feather is like a leaf that absorbs the sun's light. It is why we tend to be mostly black since black absorbs the most light."

"Is that why you like to stay in your dragon form after you've been injured?" Roxas asked remembering when Axel was hurt by the mermaid. "When did the wound from the mermaid heal?"

"When the sun rose I assume," Axel shrugged, "It really wasn't that big of a deal even though you were making it to be. The only reason it didn't heal almost instantly was because a) I had just been in the water and b) it happened at night. Now if I had been in my dragon form while in the water it would have been worse. You see, when my feathers are wet they don't work at all and even sometimes can be burned by the sun by the rays of light reflecting through the water. It is one of three ways a fire dragon can be burned."

"What do you mean they don't work at all?" the human replied asking another question. He knew he had to know these things in order to keep Axel from getting hurt again. "And what are the other two ways for a fire dragon to be burned."

"Electricity and black ice," Merlin said as he entered the cave with a mountain of books following behind him. "I see you are already starting to learn about your dragon."

"Black ice?" Roxas replied letting yet another question escape his lips.

"Yes," Axel groaned, "There is this one dragon back home who was gifted with powers over ice. Most of the time fire has the advantage over ice, but once an ice dragon learns to use black ice, it's different. It is an ice that can't be melted by fire and it burns like hell. Took me a week to grow some of my feathers on my tail back."

"So I assume you don't know white fire?" the old wizard asked Axel as the mountain of books organized themselves around the dragon and rider.

"No," the dragon replied sadly. "not every fire dragon can learn it. Just like not every ice dragon can learn black ice."

"You'll get it Axel," Roxas said reassuringly. "I know you will."

"Well," Merlin said clearing his throat to get their attention. "It is time for me to teach you dragon 101. Our main focus will be on fire dragons since Axel is indeed a fire dragon, but every dragon have similar weaknesses and strengths. Of course you'll have to know about other dragons as well just in case you need to help one or even battle one. Now first off, any dragon's main weakness is their tail and their wings."

"Not all dragons have wings," Axel interrupted.

"Yes well," the old wizard stuttered trying to regain his tempo in teaching. "They are very rare and have magic much like witches and wizards that give them the ability to fly. But in general, all _winged_ dragons have a weakness with their wings and tail. Why do you think that is Roxas?"

"Well without wings they can't fly," Roxas answered, "but I don't know about the tail."

"A dragon's tail is just as important for flying as their wings," Merlin stated as he summoned a book about how a dragon is able to fly. "Think of birds and their tail feathers. A dragon's tail is similar at the end of their tail because the feathers spread out, but when they aren't flying their tails look like the tail of a cow."

"How does a dragon's tail look similar to a cows?" the fire dragon growled.

"The feathers fall in a similar fashion." Merlin explained. "Now, during the two hours of study time I want you to read this book." He handed the dragon flying book to the blonde before continuing on about his lecture on dragons.

"Even though a dragon's wings and tail are important." he continued. "For dragons that have special powers such as fire, ice, wind or more, there is one more spot that if damaged, the dragon looses their power. Every dragon has a different marking that is only visible when in their human form. If that marking is damaged then they no longer their special power."

"Not all dragons have special powers?" Roxas asked.

"No," Axel sighed, "One of my sisters from a different batch of eggs than mine is a nil. Nil means nothing in Latin. She doesn't have any powers or any multicolored feathers."

"Yes," the old dragon rider agreed, "and from what I have heard it is becoming terrifyingly more common. But that is not what we are learning about today. Maybe it will be a topic of a different day. Today it is learning about fire dragons and you now know the three things that can burn one. Let us continue about the two other weakness of fire dragons, water and extreme cold. Separate it can cause some serious problems if left untreated, but together it is the only way for a fire dragon to get sick. You see, even if wounded a fire dragon's blood has special qualities that keeps wounds from getting infected and even poison. However, if a fire dragon is wet in the cold they will get extremely sick and most don't live through it.

Water by itself keeps a fire dragon's feathers from absorbing sunlight and keeping the dragon warm. Which is why if Axel ever falls into the water in his dragon form that you should dry him as soon as possible. In his human form it isn't as bad because dragon tails and wings were meant for resisting water so a dragon can fly in the rain. Yes, fire dragons can fly in the rain, but it extremely dangerous to do so. Now then, fire dragon's have the upper hand against ice dragons because fire melts ice. Fire dragons can resist the cold because of their naturally warm blood and special feathers, but they can't be out in the cold for longer than twelve hours. Other dragons except ice can only stay in the cold for an hour or two depending on what power they possess. Any questions so far?" Roxas shook his head trying to absorb all the information that Merlin was giving him.

After six hours of listening to Merlin's lectures, interrupted by Axel every so often, Roxas' brain felt like it was going to explode. The first part of the lecture was interesting because it was things he needed to learn to keep Axel safe, but the rest was boring and seemed to drag on. There were so many different types of dragons that he wondered how Merlin even could remember the differences. Some differences were so small that Roxas was sure he would mix dragons up if he ever did encounter another one. The thing that scared him the most was that this wasn't even the beginning of his training. Merlin said he would have to learn not just about dragons, but all the other mythical creatures as well. Which ones were friendly, which one weren't, what their weakness and strengths were and many many more. Not only that but he was going to have to learn how to fight and when he was done with just basic fighting he would have to learn how to fight while riding Axel. Now he wasn't sure he has what it takes to be a dragon rider.

"Now, study up." Merlin demanded, "I will give you a test tomorrow on everything we went over today. Tomorrow I will teach you how to fight and since you have some magic I will teach you some simple spells that will help you." With that said he left the two to study and eat their lunch.

"How am I supposed to remember all this by tomorrow?" Roxas groaned as he grabbed his overworked head. "There are over 150 different types of dragons (2)."

"I will help you Roxie," Axel laughed, "Don't worry. You forget that as a dragon I kind of have to know all the different types of dragon. Besides, if you forget I will know the answer. If the time ever comes where we have to battle other dragons then you can rely on me. Most dragon riders are supposed to start off early, you have a lot to catch up on so until you can catch up I'll be your backup."

"Thanks Axel," the blonde smiled. "I guess I should start studying then. Will you help me?"

"Of course," the dragon laughed. "So what is the best type of dragon?"

"What?" Roxas asked completely confused by the question.

"Fire duh," Axel teased, "Get it memorized!"

"I think water is better," the blond retaliated.

"I'm hurt Roxie!" the dragon replied with a sad voice, "How could you say such a thing?"

"I'm just kidding Axel," Roxas laughed, "Of course fire is the best. Why wouldn't it be?"

"You're a quick learner," Axel grinned. "Okay, next question. List the five most common types of dragon."

"Earth, Water, Wind, Fire and Lightning."

"Okay the five least common?"

"Time, Space, Dark, Light and...um... Transfiguration. "

"Good!" Axel exclaimed with excitement. "See, you know it!"

The two of them continued to go through the different dragons throughout the rest of day which included the weakness, strengths, and speed. To Roxas' surprise, he actually knew all of them by the time the sun was starting to set. Not only that, but he also went over the process of how dragons fly. He noticed it was much easier learning it from Axel, an actual dragon, rather than some book that was written by a human. He was ready for Merlin's test and actually couldn't contain his excitement to show the old dragon rider how much he learned in one day.

Axel watched the sun disappear behind the horizon before moving his wing around and taking off the splint. His wing was healed just as he predicted and was thankful that it wasn't a bad wing injury. He had seen dragons who had broken their wings beyond repair and hoped never to be in that situation. The thought of not being able to fly ever again was like loosing a part himself, but he knew that he would rather give up flying than Roxas. He looked at the blonde going through some of the books again, yawning every so often from studying so hard. Just the thought of loosing him was almost too much. Shaking his head he tested his wing once more for good measure then transformed into his human form.

"I'm glad you're wing is better," Roxas yawned completely exhausted.

"Come on," Axel chuckled softly, "Let's get you to bed." Just as he said that two beds appeared in the cave which they both knew was Merlin's doing. They knew that Axel couldn't live in the lighthouse on the off chance that someone would spot him and Roxas wouldn't go anywhere Axel wasn't.

"I just need to study a little more," the blonde complained weakly as he rubbed his eyes. "Besides, I'm not tired."

"Ah huh,sure." the redhead smirked thinking how childlike Roxas was acting. "Come on Roxie, we'll study some more in the morning so it will be fresh in your mind." He picked up Roxas who didn't argue and just curled into his arms. When he reached one of the beds, he gently placed Roxas on it before covering him with the warm blanket at the end of the bed.

"Night Axel," Roxas yawned, "thank you for helping me study." Without another word he fell asleep, with a small smile.

"Night Roxas," Axel answered with a smile of his own. He wasn't tired just yet so he sat at the edge of the bed watching the blonde peacefully sleep. Every time he looked at Roxas his heart speed up and he felt something tingle deep within him. Never before had he felt this way so he didn't even know what he could describe the feeling as. At first he thought it was just the bond between them as rider and dragon, but that didn't quite explain it. He knew eventually that they would go to the nest and hopefully his parents would have the answer for him. Granted, he would have to ask them after they chewed him out for leaving and allowing a human to ride him. He only hoped that he would be able to protect Roxas better in the future. It wasn't until the moon was almost to its peak in the sky that Axel went to bed himself.

**~0~**

Roxas groaned as he woke up with a splitting headache and a body with tired limbs. He couldn't explain the sudden pain in his head or the weariness of his body. Slowly he opened his eyes to realize that he was no longer in the cave, but out in some forest with snow on the ground. _How long has it been?_ he wondered. There was no way he could have been asleep for it long enough for the snow to become thick, surely he would have died long before. It made him wonder if he was somewhere where it snows all the time, which would explain everything except the reason why he was here to begin with. But the more he tried to remember the more his head started to hurt. He gently placed his hand on his head and felt something slick and wet. When he brought his hand down to examine it, it was covered in blood. His eyes widened as he remembered being attacked by Marluxia while he was training with Axel.

"Axel!" Roxas screamed forcing his protesting limbs to work. He managed to get up and scanned the forest for any sign of Axel, but there was none. Terror began to fill his entire body as the reality of everything began to sink in. He didn't know how long he had been unconcious and in that time Marluxia could have taken Axel away or worse killed him. They were supposed to be training in this climate so Roxas could learn to feel when Axel was getting close to his limit in the cold. Before Marluxia attacked, they had been heading back because they had been out here for ten hours. Tears started to fall from his eyes only to be frozen to his cheeks the moment they left his eyes. _What if Axel is freezing to death?_ he cried to himself.

Stubbornly he shook his head trying to think positive because just standing there and doing nothing wasn't going to get him anywhere. Once again he willed his body to move through the snow covered earth not knowing where he was going, but something was pulling him in that direction. After what seemed like ages he came upon some trees that had been split open as if something had crashed into them. He started to move quicker until he was running into an open field where Axel lie there in his dragon form.

"Axel!" he screamed as he watched Axel shiver, and he let out a sigh of relief to know that Axel was still alive. He cleared the distance in the matter of seconds, but as he got closer his brief feeling of relief was shattered. Axel had a bunch of cuts all over his body and there was a large piece of a tree impaled through his left wing.

Marluxia came out of the shadows with a proud smirk on his face. He stood there between Roxas and Axel with a giant scythe in his hand wearing a black cloak looking like the grim reaper who had just won the ultimate prize.

"Well, well, well," Marluxia grinned, "It seems you did survive the crash and that means that you get to watch as I kill your dragon."

"No!" Roxas screamed as he ran past the man and wrapped his arms around Axel's neck. "I won't let you!"

"Like you can stop me?" the pink haired man laughed as he turned around. "Even if you did defeat me you really think you can save him? He is a fire dragon correct? By the way he is shivering it means that he is close to his limit for being out in the cold. I would be ending his life so he wouldn't have to suffer through a slow death."

"Shut up!" the blonde cried as he turned his attention back to Axel. "Axel! Axel! Wake up! Come on! We have to get out of here! Axel!" He felt two hands grab his shoulders and start shaking him.

"Roxas!" said a familiar voice somewhere off in the distance. "Roxas!" The voice slowly got louder and louder and the shaking got harder and harder until he opened his eyes to see two worried green eyes staring down at him. His eyes scanned the walls of the cave realizing that he was no longer in the middle of snowy forest.

"Roxas," Axel said with a heavy sigh of relief, "You were screaming in your sleep. Are you ok?"

"Axel!" Roxas cried as he threw his arms around the redhead and started to sob uncontrollably into his shoulder.

"Shhh, it's okay," Axel said softly trying to comfort the sobbing blonde. He wrapped his own arms around Roxas and held him tight. "I'm here, there is nothing to worry about. It was just a bad dream." He let Roxas cry into his shoulder whispering comforting things trying to get him to calm down enough to ask him what his nightmare was about. Though, he had a feeling it had something to do with him from the way the blonde had been screaming his name and the way he was clinging to him right now.

"I was so scared," the blonde sobbed, "I thought I had lost you." He clung to the redhead a bit more just make sure he wasn't still sleeping because the dream had felt so real. The nightmare had been at the back of his mind since he had first left with Axel, but only now decided for fully bloom with everything that had happened recently. First the mermaid, now the phoenix and both times Axel had been hurt because of him. He knew that Marluxia was still out there hunting them down and wanting nothing more than to kill Axel.

"I'm here Roxie," the redhead sighed running his hand through Roxas' blonde locks of hair, "It was just a bad dream, ok."

"No!" Roxas shouted and pushed Axel away, "You don't understand! I'm not good enough to be your rider! I can't protect you! I'm not strong enough! I..." He was cut off when Axel grabbed him by the front of his shirt and press his warms lips against his own. He didn't couldn't even comprehend how it happened. Axel pulled away and rested his head on the blonde's shoulder.

"Just shut up Roxas," Axel whispered, "It isn't always about you. You don't think I have nightmares about loosing you? I still have nightmares about the mermaid getting you and I was too late. Or the phoenix." He grabbed Roxas' shoulders gently as he lifted his head to look into blue eyes.

"Roxas," he continued, "You mean everything to me. I left the nest because I felt like I didn't belong, but when I met you everything felt right. We were meant to be together Roxas whether you like it or not. If you leave, you think you can protect me then or I can protect you?" He felt himself trembling as something wet made its way down his cheek. His life would be empty again without Roxas and he couldn't stand to even think about it.

"Axel..." Roxas whispered gently taking the redhead's face between his hands and drawing him into a soft kiss. He didn't know why he had the sudden urge to do so, but it felt right. He broke off the kiss to kiss away the tears on Axel's face not wanting him to cry anymore. Seeing the pain in those soft green eyes was almost worse than imagining loosing the redhead. He never wanted to see that pain in Axel's eyes ever again. He was going to become strong enough to protect the person he cared about most.

"Go back to bed," the redhead said with a heavy sigh, "You have your test tomorrow." So many emotions were running through him that he couldn't even tell them apart anymore. It was probably best if they both went to bed so they could forget about tonight and worry about what they were going to do tomorrow morning. He went to get up to return to his own bed, but a firm hand grabbed his wrist causing him to turn around. He looked down at Roxas with his eyes on the floor purposefully avoiding eye contact.

"Please sleep with me," the blonde pleaded not wanting the nightmare to return. He hoped that if he knew Axel was next to him that he could sleep without any worry. When he didn't hear any reply he looked up into bright green eyes silently begging the redhead to listen.

"Oh, okay," Axel sighed not able to resist the terrified blue eyes. "Scoot over."

Roxas moved over to allow the redhead some space in the bed which ended up barely being big enough for both of them. Axel rested on his right side so his wings and tail wouldn't bother the blonde. He frowned at the fact that he couldn't sleep on his stomach like all dragons do in their human form and dragon form for that matter. Dragons weren't meant to sleep on their sides, it was irritating to do so. He just about to tell Roxas that this wouldn't work, only to look down and see the blonde already fast asleep clinging to his shirt. It was enough to make him completely forget about his own problems and smile. He pulled the blanket over them before wrapping his arms around Roxas and placing a soft kiss on the boy's forehead.

"Sleep well Roxas," Axel whispered before falling asleep himself.

**~0~**

Archimedes let out a sigh of relief as he entered the island of the dragons without any difficulty. It had been a long flight and he was thankful that no one had followed him or caused him problems. He circled around in the sky looking for the familiar spiky black hair that Zack was known for. He ended up spotting a head of spiky hair and swooped down to see if it was Zack or not. As he got closer to the person he realized that the person was in fact a boy and had brown hair not black. Irritated he perched on a small ledge so he could ask the boy where Zack was.

"Hey you," Archimedes shouted, "Where is Zack Fair?" He frowned as the boy turned around because there was something familiar about the boy's face, but he couldn't quite place it.

"Zack isn't here right now," the boy answered, "I'm his apprentice so if you want you can talk to me."

"The boy with the keyblade?" the old owl asked suspiciously.

"Yes," the brunette smiled summoning a beautiful white keyblade with a blue and yellow looking star shape at the end of it. "Trust me now?" As quickly as the keyblade appeared it vanished.

"Fine," Archimedes grunted hoping he was making the right choice to trust this boy as he handed him the letter. "This letter is very important concerning a boy named Roxas..."

"Roxas!" the boy interrupted with shocked blue eyes. "Does he look like me only with blonde hair?"

"Yes," Archimedes hooted angrily finally realizing why the boy looked so familiar, but irritated that he was interrupted. "But regardless we think that someone is after him and need Zack to escort him here where him and Axel will be safe. Make sure Zack gets that letter as soon as possible."

"I will," the brunette promised before running off causing Archimedes to shake his head in annoyance.

The brunette darted through the many levels of the giant mountain that was the island of the dragons. He had to find his dragon and leave as soon as possible to go see if it really was Roxas. He entered the training room where he normally found his dragon, but there was no sign of him.

"Have you seen Riku?" the boy asked the few that were in the room. They all answered no, which didn't help him at all so he decided to go to all of Riku's favorite spots. It wasn't until he went to the beach that he found the white haired boy sitting on a palm tree that grew horizontal instead of vertical. It was here on this beach where they met more than a year ago.

"Riku," the brunette shouted as he ran over to the other boy. "I have been looking everywhere for you."

"What's up?" Riku asked jumping down from the palm tree. The look on his rider's face worried him because he looked like he had seen a ghost.

"It's Roxas," the young dragon rider replied, "I think he is alive."

"What?" the dragon asked in shock. He had heard about the brunette's family that had died in the shipwreck. It was because of that shipwreck that the two of them met on this exact beach. Roxas was the name of his rider's twin, but they had searched for an entire month after the shipwreck and found nothing about his twin.

"An owl came to deliver a message to Zack," the brunette said, "He said it was important because a boy named Roxas and his dragon are in danger. Riku, we have to investigate! If it really is Roxas then he is in danger! Zack won't be back for another four days! In that time Roxas might..."

"Sora," Riku sighed grabbing the brunettes shoulders to calm him down. "Calm down, we'll go put the letter in Zack's room and leave right after."

"Zack will be mad." Sora frowned scrunching up his nose knowing that they would have an earful of lectures and a month of kitchen duty. "But it is my twin, and I have to know if it is really him."

"Then let's stop wasting time," the white haired boy smiled as he turned into his dragon form that was almost a pure white except for the lightly tinted blue spikes that ran along his back. Sora hopped onto Riku's back and they took off into they sky to drop off the letter then to find Roxas.

"Hold on Roxas," Sora whispered, "I'm coming."

* * *

**A/N: **

(1) Yes I know that Vanitus and Ventus aren't really twins... but they might as well be like Roxas and Sora. XD haha

(2) Hahaha, I couldn't think of a number so I just picture the pokemon number. XD the original 150. sorry i am crazy!

And yes, Ventus annoys me. Sorry if anyone likes him, but him going up to everyone he meets in the game and going 'hi i'm ventus, but call me ven' got old after the third time. Believe me, it is more annoying in Japanese than in English. Probably because Jesse McCarthy plays Roxas/Ventus in the English version. *drools* XD please don't kill me, it's not that I hate him, he just bugs me. Or maybe I just am not used to seeing 'roxas' not act all grumpy and snot nosed bratty. What can I say? I am a Roxas fan. It is why I write AkuRoku.

Anyways... the beginning of the 3rd scene, my heart was racing the entire time I was writing it. I was like, god hurry up so I can have Roxas wake up from this nightmare!

I hope you liked all the snuggles I did!

*starts playing Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep AGAIN*

If you don't see me in a while send a search and rescue party because I probably died playing the game! haha Byes!


	6. Strength of the Heart

**~6~**

**Strength of the Heart**

Roxas let a small yawn escape his lips as he slowly began to wake up just before sunrise like he was used to. There was a warmth next to him that he snuggled closer to because he didn't want to wake up just yet and feel the bitterness of the cold morning air. His blue eyes blinked open to gaze upon Axel's sleeping face causing a smile to tug at the corners of his lips. He realized that he had never seen Axel sleeping in his human form and wished he could see it more often. He noticed a stray strand of red hair in Axel's face and gently pushed it back into place causing the redhead to stir a bit. A strange feeling came over him that made his entire body tingle when those green eyes opened as the two look at each other.

There was a moment of silence before Axel let out a yawn and sat up to stretch. His whole right side was numb from sleeping on it which was annoying but it was well worth it. Sleeping next to Roxas in his human form was somehow more satisfying than in his dragon form, but he couldn't understand why. He watched the blonde sit up and try to rub the sleepiness from his eyes as he yawned.

"Well I see you two are already up." Merlin said as he entered the cave, not with books this time, but with weapons, armor and shields. "I hope you studied Roxas because I am going to quiz you once you are ready. Go on now, take a shower and get changed."

Roxas let out a frustrated sigh as he exited the bed to head to the back of the cave where the shower was. He was afraid to leave Axel alone in fear that his nightmare might actually come true. It wasn't that he didn't trust Merlin, but even Merlin wasn't able to protect his dragon in the end. He wondered if he would end up being the same and have to watch Axel die. There was a sudden tightness in his chest just at the thought of having to sit by and watch just because there was nothing he could do. The nightmare from last night kept replaying in his head and even more so the words Marluxia kept saying. '_Even if you did defeat me you really think you can save him?' _He shook his head stubbornly as he undressed and let the water wash over his body. He wished the water could wash away his worries, but it wouldn't. Even if he became strong enough to protect Axel there would always be that fear lurking somewhere inside him. He was certain that Merlin didn't loose his dragon because he wasn't strong enough, that something must have gone wrong. This only proved that no matter how powerful a dragon rider becomes, there is a chance they might loose their dragon.

Meanwhile...

Axel looked over at the old dragon rider after the blonde had disappeared to a different part of the cave. He would have gone with his rider just to keep an eye on him, but it would have led to some serious questions. First, fire dragons didn't deal with water very well. Fire dragons were made so they weren't required to take baths. Their feathers naturally cleaned themselves in the sunlight as well as his skin underneath. Second, he was sure the old man would think it strange just period for a dragon to follow his rider everywhere. Although he didn't know much about dragon riders, back at the nest there were still a few and they didn't spend every minute together.

"How's your wing?" Merlin asked as he used his magic to clear a space in the middle of the cave for training.

"All better," Axel grinned as he moved it around just to prove it.

"That's good," the old rider replied after taking note of the wing working fine. He did admit that Archimedes was right that Axel had been lucky it was a simple break. A broken wing could always be repaired, but a shattered wing was beyond repair even from the strongest of wizards and witches. He should know, it was because of his carelessness that his own dragon had shattered his wing. Even though his dragon survived it was a fate worse than death for a dragon not to be able to fly again. His eyes narrowed and his grip tightened on his staff at the memories coming back that he had long forgotten. The resemblance between Axel and his dragon was almost too much to bare and he was fairly certain that they were somehow related.

"Merlin," Axel said softly snapping the old man out of his thoughts of the past. "The bond between dragon and rider. How is supposed to feel?" He was curious to know if the strange feelings towards Roxas were normal. That every time the boy was near him that his heart would start to race and would feel a nervous flutter of butterflies in his stomach. That he always wanted to be close to the blonde and protect him from any harm that might try and hurt him physically and emotionally. The way that Roxas was crying last night, he never wanted to see that again. The pain in those soft blue eyes nearly broke his heart.

"It isn't something that can be described," Merlin answered softly wondering why the dragon would ask such a thing. "You should know. Can't you feel it? I'm sure you felt it from the moment you met the boy. From the moment I met you I knew you two were meant to be dragon and rider, but you just needed the training." He noticed there was still confusion in the redhead's green eyes that made him wonder if there was something more going on. The fact that he found the two of them in the same bed this morning was enough to bring some interesting facts into the light. He shook his head not really wanting to know about what else was going on between the two. The only thing he needed to worry about was making sure the two were ready for a fight. Even if Zack came to escort them to safety, there was still the possibility that they would be attacked the moment they left his magical barrier.

"Now Axel," Merlin said breaking the awkward silence, "I'm sure you have had training, but you must now learn to fight with your rider. It is going to be difficult because you are going to have to be mindful of your rider as well. For now I am going to train Roxas, but when the time comes you will have to train together."

"Can I train with Roxas?" Axel asked. "I have never been taught how to fight in my human form." It was true that dragons never learned how to fight in their human form because if their marks somehow got damaged they had much to loose. His friend Demyx had trained to fight in his human form only because he had a rider. It was actually when he left the nest because he had seen the bond between the two and desperately wanted to have a rider as well. Now he had Roxas and he wanted to learn everything he could to keep him safe.

"Well I suppose," the old wizard replied thoughtfully. "It is customary for a dragon with a rider to learn to fight in human form as well. Although we'll have to give you a fencing mask to protect your marks. It might make if difficult, but a necessary measure for now." He touched his own cheeks where Axel had his marks that were the source of his fire powers.

Axel touched the two upside down teardrops on his cheeks and winced at the thought of having them damaged leaving him without his fire powers. Sometimes he wished that his marks weren't on his face completely visible to the world, but it was how he was born, no getting around that. His trail of thought was lost when he heard footsteps behind him signaling that Roxas was done washing up. He turned to look at the blonde and scrunched his nose up when he realized Roxas' hair was still wet. He could smell the dampness of it and even could see a few droplets forming at the tips of strands of blonde hair. No matter, he wasn't in his dragon form so the small amount of water didn't bother him.

"I'm ready," Roxas beamed, eager to learn how to fight. His blue eyes scanned the cave noticing that there was now a large circle in the middle of the cave, clearly a fighting arena. With the large space cleared, he finally noticed just how large the cave was.

"First you test," Merlin chided as he summoned the exam book in front of Roxas with a pencil next to it. "Be sure to fill out all the information. If you pass then you will learn to fight. If not, then we must continue our lesson from yesterday."

Roxas let out a frustrated groan completely forgetting about the test he had today about the different types of dragons and the way a dragon flies. He was supposed to get up early so he could study with Axel before, but the nightmare had drained him. Stubbornly he shook his head to attempt to get the nightmare to go away so he could concentrate on the exam. He looked at the first question and answered it with relative ease. Before he knew it, he had finished the test without even really having to thing about the answer. The book disappeared then reappeared in Merlin's hands so he could examine it.

Merlin flipped through the exam book surprised that the boy had answered everything correctly. He nodded in approval as he closed the book causing it to disappear. Even though the boy was having problems with the material the previous day, it seemed that he did know it. He looked up to see Axel giving Roxas a thumbs up and couldn't help but smile.

"Very good," Merlin said with approval. "You didn't miss a single question. However, fighting won't be as easy. I sense that you have some magic in you so I will be teaching you some simple spells that will help you in battle."

"How about some breakfast before that?" Aerith laughed as she brought in a tray of food. "Always about training before eating. You know breakfast is the most important meal of the day." She scolded her father as she put the tray down on the table. She took four plates off of the tray and placed them on the table before taking a seat and beckoning the others to join her. The three reluctantly went over and took their seats as she served pancakes and bacon to each of them.

"So how is training?" she asked curiously pouring some of her homemade blueberry syrup onto her pancakes. Archimedes still hadn't come back from delivering the letter, but it made sense since dragon island was at least a day's flight away.

"I didn't miss a single question," Roxas beamed proud that he was able to remember everything in such a short period of time. "Of course I couldn't have done it without Axel's help."

"Wow, not even my father was able to do that," Aerith giggled softly which turned into laughter at the irritated face her father gave her.

"Yes well," Merlin coughed in embarrassment, "I already had much on my mind then. I was studying to become a wizard when I found out I was a dragon rider."

"Just wait until you go to dragon island." the brunette smiled causing Axel to freeze in place.

Axel knew that they would have to go there, but he didn't really want to go back just yet. His father would seriously rip him a new one about having a rider. Despite his father once having a rider, he always talked so bitterly about it as if it was something he didn't want to remember. Axel had always brushed it off as it begin because he no longer had his rider anymore, but ever since his twin found his rider there father had been acting different. Maybe he should talk to his mother instead because she seemed much more understanding than his father.

"Axel," Roxas said softly, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," the redhead chuckled nervously, "it's just my parents kind of didn't approve of me wandering around. I'm going to be in big trouble when I return."

"You have a rider now," Merlin said, "They can't ground you too much since you'll be going through even more training once you arrive. And since we are on that topic, until Zack comes to get you I think it is best that you two don't do any flying."

"What!" Axel shouted as he stood up and banged his hands on the table, "You can't keep a dragon from flying! You might as well just cut my wings off now! Or better yet destroy my marking while you're at it! Why don't you pour water all over me in my natural form and throw me in the snow?" His wing had just healed and all he wanted to do was go outside to fly. Sure it was one thing to not fly because his wing was injured or he wasn't in the mood (which was very, very rare), but to be ordered not to fly. He had seen dragons who could no longer fly because of an injury and most killed themselves within days. Dragons weren't meant to grounded. The old man was a former rider, he should know all about this. So why was he asking him to not fly?

"Calm down Axel," the old dragon rider demanded, "It is only until Zack comes to get you. It is too dangerous for you to be flying around without the magical mist that covers the dragon island."

"But you let us fly two days ago." Roxas argued just as upset about the matter as Axel was. He enjoyed being able to fly with his dragon and to have that taken away just because the old man thought it was dangerous was beyond annoying. Besides, how was he going to learn how to fight if he couldn't practice it while riding Axel. That was how he was going to fight mostly, wasn't it?

"And that was a mistake," Merlin sighed, "But trust me when I say it is for your own safety. You'll get to fly plenty when you get to dragon island."

"So what?' the redhead growled, "I'm stuck here until this Zack decides to show up? It is not like I can go wandering through town in my human form. This is unicorn shit!"

"Axel," Aerith pleaded, "It is only for a little bit. I'm guessing a few days at most if Zack is on a mission he can't come right away."

"No," Axel scoffed, "I'm not staying in this cave like some kind of caged dragon. Come on Roxas, we're leaving." He got up from the table and went to the entrance of the cave hoping Roxas would follow him. He had a feeling he would leave without his rider, but probably come back eventually.

"Should we go to dragon island?" Roxas asked with a smile. He would go where ever Axel would go because if Axel wasn't happy neither was he.

"Wait," Merlin ordered, "You're not ready! You need more training!"

"Sure," Axel grinned at Roxas' question ignoring Merlin all together. He transformed into his dragon form and lowered himself so Roxas could hop on. Once his rider was on they took off into the sky ignoring the complaints of Merlin and Aerith. He wasn't one to listening to orders which was yet another reason why he left the nest because there were too many rules. He was a free spirit and rules were meant to be broken his book. Together they soared through the sky and headed north along the coast at bit since Axel didn't want to return to the nest just yet. He was so caught up in everything that had just happened that he didn't notice he was still very visible to anyone who happened to look up. (of course they were too high for most to notice.)

"I missed flying," Roxas sighed contently as he laid his body flat against Axel's warm feathers. Even though it had only been a day of not being able to fly, he missed it and could only imagine how Axel must have felt.

"Me too," the dragon laughed, "I hope you don't mind that we don't go to dragon island just yet. I don't know if I want to face my parents right now."

"It's okay," the blonde smiled, "We can just enjoy flying for now. I'm in no hurry to get there."

They took their time flying up the coast enjoying the soft breeze that was accustomed to the season of fall just before the bitter winter winds. Roxas was dozing off to sleep when he heard earsplitting screeches all around them. He sat up and looked around to see large eagles all around them with what looked like people in black cloaks with the hoods drawn over their faces. His blue eyes widened in shock because he recognized that cloak from his nightmare, it was the one that Marluxia had been wearing. Silently, he curse in his head for not stopping Axel and not listening to Merlin's warning. It was too late now, they were going to have to win this battle on their own and then hurry to dragon island.

"Roxas stay in my feathers," Axel ordered, "It is going to get cold." He knew that griffins couldn't fly as high as dragons otherwise their feathers froze, but the feathers on dragons' wings and tails were meant to fly through extreme weather conditions. Besides, he was a fire dragon meaning that his wings wouldn't freeze like other dragons' wings would. They passed through another level in the atmosphere and just two more before the griffins couldn't follow. He knew he wasn't ready to fight with a rider, the phoenix incident had proved that, but even worse was Roxas didn't have a weapon to fight with. Their best bet was to try to escape to where their attackers couldn't follow.

Roxas did as he was told and could feel the air get colder and colder the higher they flew. He closed his eyes and prayed to whatever god was out there to let them make it because he didn't have a weapon to fight with meaning Axel would be alone in this battle.

_'But you do have a weapon'_ said a strange voice in his head that sounded like nothing he had ever heard before. _'You are a dragon rider and a wielder of the keyblade. All you have to do it look inside...'_ The voice disappeared not giving any other hint as to what a keyblade was or how he was supposed to summon it. A flash of light caused him to open his eyes as something shot past them in a black flash.

"Black ice," Axel hissed in annoyance. Only dragons were supposed to be able to summon black ice, but it seemed that one of these people was a wizard or witch that had somehow learned the ability. There were flaws in it, he could see it since he had seen the real thing, but he also knew that it was close enough to actually burn him. He did not want to be burned by black ice again. He quickened his pace to get away from their attackers, but something grabbed hold of his tail causing him to let out a painful roar. Spikes of some sort pieced through his tough dragon skin and he looked back to see fire vines slowly wrapping around his tail. He knew that he couldn't get away from those plants that one of the people in black had summoned because it was the one plant that couldn't be burned. If he had white fire he could burn it, but he didn't and now he was stuck.

Roxas turned to see the vines around Axel's tail when he let out a pained roar. This was his fault, he knew it. A dragon rider knew how to protect his dragon, and he didn't even bring a weapon like Merlin told him to always do. He wished he could summon a weapon like a true dragon rider should be able to, but he wasn't ready. He was useless. The voice he had heard earlier started to repeat itself again, but it still didn't make sense. He closed his eyes wishing with all his heart that he could protect Axel. A soft warmth filled his entire body as he could feel Axel's heartbeat, the strength of his wings pulling them higher into the sky, the pain of the vines cutting through his skin. It was as if he was one with Axel. Something metal touched his hand causing him to open his eyes. In his hand was a large black looking key, but it was sharp like a blade.(oblivion)

"A keyblade," Roxas whispered to himself. He turned to look back at the the person summoning the vines with a glare. "Don't touch my dragon!" He jumped off of Axel's back and soared down Axel's back until he reached his tail to slice off the vines. Surprisingly, the blade passed right through Axel, but sliced the vines off with ease. He grabbed onto one of Axel's large red spikes to keep himself from falling off completely sending death glares to anyone who dared harm his dragon. There was a sudden sting around his butt that he didn't understand until he realized that it wasn't his pain, but Axel's. He looked at the tail, dripping blood as they leveled out. A tail was just as important for a dragon to fly and even though it wasn't damaged badly, they couldn't go up any higher meaning they would have to fight. He quickly jumped up and ran along Axel's back until he was dead center ready to attack anyone.

"Roxas," Axel cried, "Look out!" He concentrated on getting his feathers to hold Roxas in place as he twirled to avoid some black ice from hitting his rider. However, he wasn't quick enough to avoid it himself and felt the icy burn around his ankle on his left back leg. He summoned fire around him to try and burn the wings of the griffins, but a wind quickly snuffed out his fire.

"Axel!" Roxas shouted feeling Axel's pain.

"We got him!" someone shouted, "Now Larxene!"

"Larxene?" Roxas repeated with wide eyes. If Larxene was here that meant Marluxia was here as well, his nightmare was coming true. He scanned the enemies trying to figure out which one was Larxene so he could protect Axel, but all he felt was a sudden darkness coming over him. Electricity coursed not through his body, but Axel. He figured it might as well be going through him as well with the pain he was feeling.

Axel let out a roar of pain and frustration. Only once had someone ever get the upper hand on him and that was because he wasn't expecting the ice dragon to know black ice. Now because of his lack of knowledge on how to fight with a rider they were loosing this battle. His wings gave out as the electricity paralyzed him. There was a burning sensation from where the electric knives still stuck just above his heart. He used what little strength he had to make sure that Roxas didn't fall and positioned himself so he would pad the blonde's landing. Darkness was starting to take over as they fell from the sky, but not towards the ground, but towards the water. He wondered why he chose to fly along the coast and was now regretting it as the water grinned up at him. They hit the water disturbing the ocean's small waves making them into larger one. The last thought Axel thought before loosing consciousness was that Roxas was okay while Roxas was hoping Axel was okay before loosing consciousness himself.

**~0~**

Sora let out a yawn as him and Riku made their way across the ocean to the lighthouse where Roxas was. He hoped they could get there quicker because was anxious to see Roxas again. After all this time of thinking he was the only one to survive, he now had a new flame of hope burning inside him. Roxas wasn't a common name and the owl had said that the boy looked like him only with blonde hair. It had to Roxas, it just had to be. There was a terrible roar of a injured dragon causing him to narrow his eyes. The sound was coming from somewhere north of where they were, but he couldn't pin point exactly how far. He could tell from the sound that the dragon was probably injured meaning they were required to help. As dragon and rider they were required to help other dragons for obvious reasons even if the dragon wasn't from their island.

"Riku," Sora said, but already felt Riku changing course to follow the sound. The only reason why he could hear it was because of his connection with his dragon. Dragon hearing was better than any other animal's hearing on the planet which meant the dragon in trouble was probably a good distance away.

"On it." Riku replied hearing the other dragon as well. Although he knew that his rider couldn't tell the difference between each dragon's roar, he could. It was Axel's and if he remembered correctly Axel was Sora's twin's dragon.

"I guess Roxas is going to have to wait," the brunette sighed in disappointment. He really wanted to see if his twin had survived the shipwreck, but if a dragon was in trouble they couldn't just brush it off either. He was sure he could wait a day or two longer since it made no difference in the long run.

"Sora..." the white dragon started, but hesitated. He wasn't sure he if should let his rider know that it was his twin's dragon that was in trouble which meant that Roxas was probably in trouble as well. It would only cause Sora more pain, so maybe it was the best to keep quiet for now so it wouldn't distract him in the fight that was sure to come. There was another cry of pain from Axel that slowly started to fade along with the sound of the whistling noise of a dragon falling. He picked up his speed, but even then he knew they would never reach Axel in time to save him from the fall. He only hoped that the fire dragon wouldn't fall into water or have a bad crash landing. A loud splash sounded a few minutes later signaling that Axel had indeed fallen into the ocean which made Riku wonder what in the world the idiot was doing flying over the ocean to begin with.

"I hope that dragon wasn't a dragon weak against water," Sora winced at the sound of the splash. He almost hoped that dragon hunters were chasing the dragon because that meant they had time to save it, but if it was an attack from another mythical creature they probably wouldn't. Even if the dragon wasn't weak against water, there was still the possibility that it would drown unless it was a water dragon.

"Sora..." Riku started again, but still wondered if he should tell Sora the truth.

"What is it Riku?" the brunette asked, "It's not like it is Roxas' dragon that is in trouble. They are with Merlin back at the lighthouse. That is what the letter said remember." He started to doubt himself when Riku didn't reply. He knew that even though he shared his dragon's abilities he still hadn't mastered them completely meaning that Riku knew exactly which dragon had been attacked.

"Riku, tell me it isn't Axel." Sora demanded feeling his heart about to stop. "Tell me it isn't Axel!" The way Riku continued to remain silent and avoided eye contact meant it was Axel they had heard. He had never met Axel because the dragon had left before he was washed up on the shores of dragon island, but all he needed to know that it was Roxas' dragon. It was possible that Axel was by himself so Roxas might not be in danger, but he doubted it. Where ever a dragon went, the rider was sure to follow. The worst part was that Axel was a fire dragon and there had been a distinct splash of water. He knew that even if his twin did survive, but Axel didn't it would be like loosing Roxas all over again. He had only seen one rider loose her dragon and she looked as if her soul had shattered. It wasn't long before she died herself saying that it was better to die than to be without her dragon.

"Sora," the white dragon whispered softly hoping his rider wouldn't start crying. "Don't worry, we'll save them."

"Roxas, Axel..." Sora whispered feeling a tear slide down his cheek. "Please be okay."

Riku focused his hearing to listen in to if it was just an attack of griffins because he was positive he heard them. There was something off, however, in their beat because the sound griffin wings made were heavy, but not nearly as heavy as the ones he was hearing now. Then he heard the voices of people talking, dragon hunters. The voices were faint under all the other noises, but it seemed as if they were going to take Axel and Roxas to their headquarters in Nobody Forest. He growled softly at the mention of the place knowing that it was filled with some of the world's most dangerous creatures, but it was nothing they couldn't handle. Everyone had been impressed at how well the two fought together even from the very first lesson, it was as they could read each others thoughts.

"Sora, they are being taken to Nobody Forest." Riku said hoping it would calm his rider down a bit. "It seems the dragon hunters have some kind of headquarters there. We'll get there a little after they will since they have a head start, but it won't be by much."

Sora didn't say anything as he looked out into the distance wishing they were closer to Axel and Roxas, but even though dragon sight could see very far, dragons could hear things farther away. It was frustrating that his twin always seemed to get himself into trouble, even now after all the time they've been apart. What was Roxas thinking going off by himself when he was warned there was danger? The frustration with his twin helped him deal with the fear, but not much.

They flew through the rest of the day and night in silence neither knowing what to say. It wasn't until the middle of the next day that they arrived at the edge of Nobody Forest. They circled the perimeter searching for the hideout of the dragon hunters, but they couldn't see anything.

"It must be hidden," Sora stated summoning his keyblade, "But it won't be for long." He closed his eyes and focused on unlocking the barrier that would conceal the dragon hunter hideout. The tip of the keyblade glowed before shooting a white light out to reveal a keyhole in a barrier that was only a few feet away from them. There was the soft click of a lock being open and the barrier disappeared to reveal a large black and white castle.

Riku dove down and landed on one of the many large balconies listening very closely to make sure no one was coming. It was obvious that the castle wasn't well protected because the dragon hunters must think that their barrier can't be broken. Once Sora dismounted he transformed into his human form summoning his own keyblade that looked like a mixture of both light and dark. The blade being like a bat wing with a bird wing coming off the tip. It was the first time in history that both the dragon and dragon rider wielded the keyblade, but neither cared.

Sora went first into the castle knowing that Riku would have his back if anyone tried to sneak up on them. However, the halls of the castle were quite empty except for the few strange white creatures that appeared to fight them every so often. They didn't run into any actual people until they arrived in what looked like a dining hall where the dragon hunters seemed to be having a party of some sort. Sora counted seven people and wondered if there were more which was probable. He turned to give his dragon the go to get ready for the fight so they could ask where they were keeping Roxas and Axel.

Riku stepped into the room causing silence to fall over everyone like a deadly mist. He smiled knowing that they were surprised to see a dragon in their castle.

"You're not afraid of the dark, are you? (1)" Riku asked with a smirk before the room was engulfed in darkness.

**~0~**

Roxas groaned as he woke up with his body feeling numb all over and light headed. He felt the bumpy cold stones beneath him and the scraping of metal around his wrists and ankles. There was no doubt in his mind that he was in a dungeon of some sort and wished he could go back in time so he could have avoided this. He rode out a fresh wave of dizziness before opening his eyes to examine exactly what kind of situation he got himself into. The dungeon was small, just big enough for him to spread out his arms and legs completely and probably stand up, but that was it. He had hoped that they would have locked him up with Axel so he could try to protect his dragon, but he doubted they were stupid enough to do that. A tear ran down his cheek as he thought about what horrible things they were doing to his dragon. This was all his fault. The nightmare had been a warning and he didn't heed it. He was going to loose his dragon after only a few days. He had to be the worst dragon rider in history.

"Axel," Roxas whispered softly as he brought his hands to his chest. To his surprise his keyblade appeared in his hands with the tip shinning brightly. The light dispersed into four different smaller beams of light and disappeared once reaching the chains. The chains unlocked with a soft click before falling to the floor completely useless. Blue eyes widened at the sight not really knowing what to make of it before they turned their attention back to the black keyblade. A terrible shiver coursed the his entire body all of the sudden and didn't seem to be going away. The room was cold, but the shiver wasn't just from the cold. Even though he was shivering his body felt oddly warm, then cold all of the sudden. He remembered the nightmare of Axel shivering in the snow as another tear made its way down his cheek.

Roxas shook his head trying to ignore the sick feeling that came over him as he stood up. He knew it wasn't because he was sick, but because Axel was. There wasn't much time for him to save his dragon, but he was going to do it. He wasn't going to loose Axel even if it meant taking on all the dragon hunters himself and going down to the deepest darkest pits of hell, he wasn't going to loose Axel. He tried to open the dungeon door, but it was locked. Growling in frustration, he tried to kick the door, but that proved to be useless. That was when he remembered what the keyblade had done with the chains, but he had no idea how to summon that light again. Closing his eyes, he focused on unlocking the door and within seconds the sound of the door unlocking echoed through the empty hall.

He took a cautious step out to see if there were any guards, but there weren't any. The dragon hunters must have thought little of him not to assign anyone to guard him, which made him a little upset, but glad at the same time. There were two ways out of the dungeon, but the exit behind him seemed to be calling him more than the other so he headed in that direction. It was as if he could sense where Axel was and was being drawn to him. The effort it took him to get up the long winding stairs was more than he had. The constant shivering and going from hot then cold wasn't helping, but he welcomed the sickness because it meant that Axel was still alive.

The moment he reached the top of the stairs something was wrong because he couldn't see anything. Everything was dark, but he could hear the noises of a battle happening somewhere within the darkness. He took a deep breath as his body felt like it was on fire all of the sudden then suddenly ice cold. The random temperature changes were happening more frequently and he didn't know why, but he had a bad feeling it wasn't good. He gathered up his strength and entered the strange darkness only to have a sword's point at his throat and pushed against the wall.

"Riku Don't!" shouted a familiar voice somewhere in the darkness. "It's Roxas!"

Roxas' eyebrows furrowed in confusion wondering how that voice knew his name. It sounded so familiar, but for some reason he couldn't place it. He felt the sword leave his throat and the pressure of someone pushing him against the wall faded. Eventually the darkness began to fade as well and two figures started to take form. The one standing in front of him was obviously a dragon with his white horns, blue tinted wings and white tail with extremely light blue spikes. The other person rushed to hug him before he even had time to see what the person looked like.

"It really is you," the person hugging him sobbed, "I thought you were dead." When the person pulled away, Roxas couldn't believe his eyes at who was standing it front of him. There was no denying with that crazy spiked brown hair and dopey grin with tears still running down his face.

"Sora?" Roxas asked still not believing that it was really his twin. The twin that he had thought died more than a year ago.

"The one and only," Sora grinned as he brought his twin in for another hug. It was then that he felt the strange temperature changes Roxas was going through and pulled back to take a look. Roxas was shivering and sometimes felt extremely hot then cold for no apparent reason.

"Roxas," the brunette asked, "Are you okay?"

"It's not me," the blonde answered before taking a deep breath, "it's Axel. I think he's sick and when a fire dragon gets sick..." He couldn't finish the sentence remembering his studies that almost all fire dragons die when they get sick. Fresh tears started to run down his cheeks in a constant stream as he continued to feel Axel's pain.

"We have to hurry then," the white haired dragon stated. "You're his rider, show us where he is."

Roxas nodded before making his way down the hall that seemed to go on forever. Once at the end of the hall there was a stair case that led downstairs into what looked like another dungeon. He groaned at having to go down the stairs because it was becoming more and more of a task just to stay standing.

"Roxas," Sora said putting a hand on his twin's shoulder, "Put your keyblade away. You'll feel better and we will fight anyone in the way."

"No," Roxas replied stubbornly, "If Axel is suffering, then I should as well."

"You're stupid," Riku sighed, "You can't protect him if you aren't focused. Listen to Sora and put your keyblade away. The reason you are in this mess to begin with is because you don't listen."

Roxas looked down at the floor knowing that the white haired dragon was right. It was because they didn't stay with Merlin that they ended up being attacked by the dragon hunters. If they had stayed to train a bit on how to fight together as a dragon and rider they probably wouldn't have ended up in this mess either. He was stupid. Without any protest he made the keyblade disappear feeling instantly better when he did, but he did have a slight headache.

Riku nodded in approval before taking the lead down the stairs with Sora taking up the rear so Roxas could be in the middle. He held his arm out as he came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs listening for any sign of danger. There was the sound of Axel shivering and he could smell a human down here, but couldn't hear where. They would have to be careful because battling in the dark with Axel and Roxas wasn't an option especially with Axel sick. He closed his eyes listening carefully to pin point the human's location since the other smells of the dungeon were throwing his nose off. A footstep echoed through the dungeon from where Axel was being kept making him hiss in annoyance. He put his hands to his lips to signal them to be quiet otherwise the human who was bound to be a dragon hunter would hear them.

Sora followed his dragon's lead knowing that Riku had more experience dealing with dragon hunters. They had only been on one mission together where they went to rescue a dragon from dragon hunters, but Riku had been on many before they met. Together the three of them silently went down the hall until they came to what he assumed was where Axel was being kept. His blue eyes narrowed as heard sounds of footsteps coming from within the cell. That was why Riku had told them to be quiet. He exchanged a look with his dragon as they began to plan on how to handle the situation, but before they could develop one Roxas summoned his keyblade.

Roxas opened the door and charged in despite becoming dizzy from summoning his keyblade again. His eyes narrowed when he saw Marluxia standing over Axel and instantly attacked without thinking.

"Get away from him!" Roxas screamed as he charged and brought his keyblade down on Marluxia only to have it stopped by a giant scythe.

"Even if you defeat me you really think you can save him?" Marluxia taunted with a confident smirk.

Roxas winced at the words bringing back the events that happened in the nightmare. The nightmare was coming true. He felt as if a thousand rocks plummeted into his stomach at the thought of being helpless. The sounds of footsteps behind him echoed through the dungeon as Sora and Riku came to stand beside him. No, this was different from the nightmare. He had help this time and he had the keyblade to fight with. This was going to have a different ending.

"Sora, Riku," Roxas said pushing away from Marluxia, "Help Axel. Marluxia is mine." He had always had a hatred for Marluxia, but now it was past just hatred. He despised Marluxia with his entire being. It was because of Marluxia that they were attacked, that there was danger for Axel and every other dragon in the world.

Sora didn't like the idea of Roxas fighting alone, but the look on his twin's face was one that was not to be argued with. He met eyes with Riku telling him that they weren't going to be in this battle which only annoyed his dragon. They circled around the pink haired man and made their way to where the black dragon was chained to the floor on the other side of the large dungeon cell. He placed a gentle hand on the shivering dragon's head feeling still wet feathers silently cursing. It was cold in the dungeon and the combination with wet feathers was why Axel was so sick. They didn't have much time and if Roxas didn't finish the fight soon he was going to join in and face his twin's wrath later.

Roxas ignore the sick feeling that was threatening him to unconsciousness. He wasn't going to give in until Marluxia was dead so that he could no longer be a threat to Axel. He raised his keyblade and went in for the attack, but Marluxia was quicker and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"You loose," Marluxia laughed from behind him, but then was pushed to the side by some invisible force. He hit the was with an audible thud and didn't get back up once he hit the floor.

"Sorry, you can fight him later." Sora said hoping his twin wouldn't chew him out. "We have to get Axel out of here before it is too late."

Roxas looked over Sora's shoulder to see Riku holding Axel who was now in his human form. He bit his lower lip and knew that Sora was right. The redhead looked ghostly pale and even though he was shivering, beads of sweat were rolling down his face. He made his keyblade disappear as he went over to take his dragon's hand surprised at it being cold instead of warm like normal.

"We need to hurry," Riku stated as he head towards the door. It would be at least a day and a half ride to the nest and he was certain it wouldn't be enough time, but if he told the two brothers they would be here longer. His aquamarine eyes looked down at the fire dragon in his arms upset that Roxas been such a horrible rider. There was movement when he exited the cell and called his keyblade ready to fight. A girl about the age of the two riders appeared with pale blonde hair, blue eyes and even paler skin.

"Namine?" Roxas said as he exited the cell with a confused expression. He knew that Marluxia and Larxene were her parents, but he didn't think they would bring her here.

"Shh, follow me. We don't have much time." Namine whispers as she pulled back a dragon hunter flag that was hanging on the wall revealing a painting of a white room filled with her paintings on the walls. She gave the four boys a smile as she entered the painting as if it was a entryway into the room.

Roxas watched as Sora and Riku didn't seemed phased by the fact that Namine had just disappeared into a wall. They disappeared through the wall following the girl, but he stood there still staring at it wondering how it was possible. Then again it was Namine and she did have special powers that no one could really explain. Even the witches and wizard who had come to examine her from time to time couldn't explain her powers since she didn't have the magic of a witch. He touched the painting and it felt like a cool gel of some sort. Before he could think about it any longer a hand came through the painting and pulled him through. He blinked his eyes as he looked around the almost completely white room. Everything about it was white from the floor all the way to the furniture, the only thing that wasn't white were the paintings hanging on the wall.

Namine put her finger to her lips to make sure they stayed quiet as she looked at a painting of her mother standing guard outside. It would let her know if her mother heard anything or would try to enter which would be really bad. As quietly as she could she took a mirror off the wall to reveal another painting that would take them to dragon island. She knew that once they went through that she would have to destroy the portal otherwise they would be followed. She motioned them forward so they could go through the portal that lead to the heart of dragon island knowing that they all had questions, but hopefully they could wait until they were all out of danger. The two she didn't know yet, but had seen in her visions entered without hesitation, but again it was Roxas that just looked like he had seen a two headed fish. Shaking her head she grabbed him and shoved him through the portal before following behind herself. She took out a paintbrush from behind her ear and painted a bucket of water and a scrub brush. Reaching into the wall she made the paintings become real as she splashed the water over the portal then took the scrub brush to erase it completely. She wasn't going to let her parents and their friends follow to the heart of the secret island where the dragons of this area lived.

"Hurry, we have to find Kairi." she whispered because she was slightly out of breath. It was only last night did she discover her new power and she had to work quickly to get unicorn hair to make a paint brush that didn't need paint.

"Kairi?" Riku and Sora said in unison and giving each other confused looks, but didn't say anything else. They both knew that now was not the time to question the girl about everything. They were lucky to be able to get to dragon island so quickly because now there was a small chance that they might be able to save Axel.

"Follow me and try to keep up," Riku said as he darted off through the maze of bewildered dragons in their human form.

Sora took Roxas' and Namine's hands so they wouldn't get lost because heaven forbid that happened. Even though Roxas was a dragon rider the dragons would still be weary of him. Then there was the girl who had brought them here when the location was supposed to be secret and immune to magical teleportation. Yet she drew a painting of it that created a portal straight through the magical barrier that was meant to keep those magical abilities from working. They were going to have to explain much to the grand dragon, not to mention he was in trouble, that much he knew. The grand dragon wouldn't look kindly on them leaving without a guardian, and when Zack got back they were really in for an earful.

Roxas was panting by the time they came to a stop in front of a large cave that looked like it was meant for dragons to enter in their natural form. His twin was pulling them so quickly through what looked like to be the city center that he didn't even get to see anything, but he would get to explore that later. His eyes landed on Axel still in the other dragon's arms and tears started to build up again. He knew they were lucky that Namine created that strange portal here, which gave Axel more time, but even then. A dragon girl with maroon hair came outside to greet them. Her smaller horns, tail and wings all matched the color of her hair which struck Roxas as odd. The maroon haired girl's blue eyes widened in fear when she saw Axel in Riku's arms.

"Riku! Sora!" the dragon girl screamed, "What happened? Oh great Draco! tell me later! Get Axel inside!" She dragged them inside the hospital wing she worked in. Normally nil like herself didn't work in the hospital itself, but she was different from the rest of nil. Even though she wasn't gifted with special powers such as healing like the curaga dragons, she was knowledgeable with herbs. She led them into the lava room where lava from the volcano ran through to keep it warm.

Riku set Axel down on the ground hoping that just the heat alone would help, but he knew better. He automatically grabbed towels from one of the shelves so they could dry Axel off once he transformed into his dragon form. However, not him nor Kairi could get the fire dragon to return to his natural form which deeply worried them.

"Let Roxas try," Sora suggested, "he is Axel's rider after all."

Roxas saw the two dragons look at him with a look between reluctance and sadness, but made way for him when he went to kneel next to Axel. He didn't know what he was supposed to do to get his dragon to transform back, but if he couldn't do it then Axel would certainly die.

"Axel," Roxas whispered trying to hold back his tears that were drying instantly from the heat, "you need to transform into your dragon form. Please, I can't loose you." When nothing happened he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on the redhead's lips, "Please Axel, I think I love you." It was odd kissing the redhead when he was on his stomach, but he managed it. He didn't even quite understand why he said the last part, but something deep inside him told him it was true. He stood up and backed away as Axel transformed back into his dragon form.

"Good, now get out all of you." Kairi ordered as she grabbed the towels from Riku. "Get Sano (2)!" When she noticed everyone left except Roxas, she frowned and stormed over to him.

"Look," she hissed, "I know your his rider and all, but you need to leave. You've already done enough. Get out."

Roxas looked at her about to argue, but the look in her eyes said he would loose this battle. With one last glance at Axel, he reluctantly left the room, but didn't go far. Once he exited and the door was magically closed behind him, he leaned against the wall only to slide down it. He hide his face in his hands and broke out into silent tears.

"Roxas..." Sora whispered hoping to comfort his twin.

"Just go away," Roxas whispered, "Just leave me alone."

Namine, Riku and Sora all looked at each other knowing that no matter what they did Roxas wasn't going to talk to them. They gave Roxas a sad look before leaving him there to await Axel's fate.

* * *

**A/N:**

(1) Sorry, Chronicles of Riddick. XD God I love that movie. And since Riku is a Dark dragon since you know he walking the path of darkness for most of the game it is like seriously the perfect line. XD bwhahahaha, so much awesomeness in that movie. That and Vin Diesel looks absolutely gorgeous with those eyes. *drools* Sorry I have many random obsessions. XD I swear I have slight ADHD...

(2) Sano means 'I cure/heal' in latin. bwahahahahaha

Sorry if there are typos or some things seem off. My sister was bothering me because she kept on reading City of Ashes aloud. Dumb butt. I really shouldn't have given her those books to read. That and I kind of have to leave to go do things, so I can't reread it, but I've been wanting to post this for like three days. So I am just posting it. Maybe I will double check it later. XD

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

*jumps onto a dragon and takes off into sky never to been seen again by the eyes of mortals*


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